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u n 


































SALES METHODS OF 


222 LIFE INSURANCE 
FIELD MEN 


TOLD BY THEMSELVES 


PUBLISHED BY 

MUTUAL UNDERWRITER COMPANY 

ROCHESTER, NEW YORK 



Creed of a 

Successful Life Insurance 
Salesman 

I believe life insurance is the greatest pre¬ 
ventive of poverty. 

I believe each person with dependents must 
carry enough protection to support them in com¬ 
fort after he dies. 

I believe it is my duty to preach life insurance 
upon every opportune occasion. 

I believe it is my duty to insist that every 
prospect carry adequate protection. 

I believe it is my duty never to take “no” for 
an answer when I know the prospect needs more 
protection, and I will use all of the resources 
of good salesmanship in selling him the insurance 
he needs. 

I believe my work is not done until every per¬ 
son I reach carries enough protection. 

I believe that in following this creed I will 
make a good living, and possibly become wealthy, 
but I will not let material success overcome my 
satisfaction in making homes happier, families 
more comfortable, widows saved from poverty 
and children educated by means of life insurance. 


Copyright 1923 by Mutual Underwriter Company 


OCT 10 i923 

n "7 P 0 2 91 





INTRODUCTION 


The only happy Americans are those successful in their busi¬ 
ness or profession. They love to be doing something useful. In 
this great race of achievement the trained and experienced man 
has an advantage over the others and his success is more likely 
to be certain. Especially is this true in life insurance salesman¬ 
ship. The man who knows how to secure prospects, how to 
present the merits of the contracts, and how to close at the proper 
time, goes at his work confidently and happily. He is master of 
a difficult profession. 

Life insurance salesmanship is a profession best learned by 
experience; the field man must go through the mill himself. 
That is the reason selling life insurance is an occupation re¬ 
garded highly by the public and why the earnings of good field 
men are large. To be a good life insurance salesman lifts a man 
to a high place among his associates. We are reminded that the 
reason man is the master of his world is because he learns every¬ 
thing by observation, experience and training, and that is the 
distinction which sets him above the lower animals. A bird 
builds a nest without experience or training, and its first nest 
is as good as its last, but the instinct handed down through 
thousands of generations limits the bird's capacity. A man 
builds a house, but first through practice and training he must 
learn how to build, and the necessity for observation and reason¬ 
ing in mastering the art of building carries him to greater 
achievements and better methods than those of his ancestors. He 
commences to reason on the accumulated wisdom of centuries 
of human progress. He takes advantage of the recorded experi¬ 
ence of his ancestors, and adds to it, and that is the reason this 
generation has Hying machines and the radio. Salesmanship also 
has improved with man’s experience and reason, and a profession 
which once was based on sociality and influence becomes a science 
as well. 

Experience is our best teacher because when confronted by a 
situation or crisis we remember how we handled a similar case 
in the past. A salesman with experience knows how to avoid 

3 









SALES METHODS 


the pitfalls, and he takes hold of the situation with confident 
because he remembers the result of the previous time. But it i: 
not necessary for him to have first-hand experience in order tc 
recognize traps or opportunities; he may become familiar witl 
the experiences of others and take lessons from those who hav< 
been successful in his line. That is the reason why salesinei 
enjoy experience talk when they get together. That is the rea¬ 
son the best part of agency conferences and sales congresses ar€ 
the stories of experience told by the field men themselves. Thai 
is the reason volumes of salesmanship theory are worth less 
than a simple story of actual experience in the field. 

This book is composed wholly of experience talks. The mer 
who wrote it are actual field men going out overy day with a rate 
book to sell life insurance; some have raised themselves to 
agency managers and field superintendents; all are qualified to 
speak with authority because they have been through the mill. 
They know. They relate incidents that really happened and tell 
of methods that actually were used. They describe how some 
plans failed and how they avoided such failures again. They 
present their successful working plans, how they created a desire 
for insurance where none existed, how they met objections, how 
they overcame competition, how they closed prospects with sales 
of large or small contracts. What is equally important, they 
breath the spirit and viewpoint of successful salesmanship. The 
field man who uses this book becomes the mental associate of 
more than two hundred prosperous and happy life insurance pro¬ 
ducers. He absorbs their confidence, makes himself a partner 
in their skill, and their experience becomes his experience. 

Many of the successful producers whose words appear in this 
book do not know they have been selected to aid thousands of 
aspiring field men who will read it. Some of them are too busy 
to write; they are devoting their time, energy and skill to life 
insurance and getting rich. We have been fortunate in obtain¬ 
ing their contributions from sales convention proceedings, where 
they arose and told an audience how they conquered their prob¬ 
lems. These experience talks are almost priceless, and to those 
who gave them to the life insurance world we express thanks 
that they were available for this volume. 

The Publishers. 


4 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER I 

PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 

Success Is No Accident. By Edward A. Woods. 13 

Advantages of Thorough Knowledge. By William Alex¬ 
ander . 13 

Are You Licked? By Philip A. Nelson . 14 

Building an Agency. By N. E. Spradley . 15 

Our Responsibility to the Home, the Church and the 

School. By Howard Scott . 16 

Preparing for the Interview. By George T. Carlin .... 16 

Right Mental Attitude. By Willard K. Bush. 17 

How to Start the Week Right. By Harry M. Haven .. 18 

Enlarging Scope of Life Salesman’s Field. By Frank L. 

Jones . 19 

Necessity of Correct Advance Information. By B. A. 

Notzen . 20 

Specialize. By John G. Morey. 21 

For the New Salesman’s Wife. By Rollin H. Harris ... 22 

Evangelism of Life Insurance. By Frank D. Shera. 24 

Faith an Essential. By O. E. Carter. 25 

Specialize. By L. Seton Lindsay . 26 

A Working Principle. By G. A. Boissard. 27 

Developing New Men. By B. N. Mills . 27 

Big Men Always Ready to Learn More. By H. G. Royer 28 
Necessity for Organization in Salesmanship. By V. A. 

Young . 29 

Working Rules of a $700,000 Producer. By J. J. Parker . 30 

Personality Your Display Case. By E. H. Marshall .... 31 

Driving Away Fear and Worry. By Charles R. Posey .. 32 

Ruined by Office and Roll Top Desk. By Horace W. Carey 33 
Setting Up Exercises in Salesmanship. By Stewart And¬ 
erson . 34 

Selling Yourself, Your Company and Your Goods. By C. 

L. Minshall . 34 

Study. By L. G. Saunders. 35 

Organize Yourself. By Willard K. Bush. 35 

Your Mental Storehouse. By G. J. A. Reany . 36 

5 


























TABLE OF CONTEXTS 


CHAPTER II 

FINDING PROSPECTS 

Sources of Prospects. By Robert D. Lay. 38 

Old Clients Are Best Prospects. By W. J. Olive. 39 

Working with Bankers. By E. W. Nothstine. 40 

Get New Leads When Delivering Policies. B. W. W. 

Williamson . 41 

How Shall We Create Prospects? By Theodore A. Waltrip 42 
Getting and Cultivating a Clientele. By J. B. Duryea ... 43 

In Mortgage Records. By G. L. Stearns. 45 

More Prospects. By J. J. Tyndall . 45 

A Definite Plan to Find Prospects. By Walter Buckner . 46 

Not a Social Diversion. By J. W. Daniels. 47 

Supply Always Good. By George T. Dexter . 48 

How We Recognize Buyers of Protection. By L. G. 

Saunders. 49 

Systematic Planning of a Field Man’s Work. By E. B. 
Houghton. 49 

/ 

’ CHAPTER III 

THE APPROACH 

Up to the Mental Capacity of “Big” Men. By John J. 

Parker . 51 

Tapping Personal Interest. By Oliver Thurman. 51 

For Inheritance Taxes. By E. S. Brashears. 53 

Easier to Get Attention on the First Call. By Charles L. 

Sykes. 54 

Make Acceptance Easy and Sell with a Smile. By S. J. 

Rosenblatt . 55 

Courage to Tackle Big Stuff. By Harry R. Wright .... 56 

Get Under His Skin. By Harry R. Wright. 57 

One-Minute Interviews. By J. B. Duryea. 58 

Special Preparation for the Prospect. By F. E. Dudley . 59 

Soliciting Farmers. By H. B. Francis . 60 

Getting Business Women Interested. By Katherine New- 

1 ton . 61 

Do Not Carry Your Hat. By Alexander Cowen. 62 

'Getting In. By Thomas H. Beck. 63 

First Impression. By Walt Leonard . 65 

6 
























TABLE OF CONTENTS 


My Methods of Approach. By C. H. Hamilton. 66 

Impaired Hearing an Asset. By a Writer in the Man- 

1 hattan Life.. 68 

1 Rely on Courtesy, Curiosity or Self-Interest. By J. W. 

' Daniels .. 69 


After a Meal. By J. W. Daniels . 69 

The Interesting Opening. By A. D. Anderson. 70 

Plan Your Interviews. By E. B. Houghton. 70 

What Does the Prospect Think? By J. Fred Lawton .. 71 

The Change of Age Plan. By Philip Burnet. 72 

Establishing the “You” Attitude. By E. Colwell, Jr. 74 

Openers. By a Writer in the Insurance Salesman. 74 

What to Do With Answers to Circular Letters. By T. J. 

Durgin . 76 

Effective Come-Back. By L. L. Brennan . 78 

Lists of Claims Paid. By H. W. Carey . 78 

Super Cold Canvass. By J. Edward Scherwin. 78 

Getting In. By C. J. Rockwell . 80 


CHAPTER IV 

PRESENTING THE CASE 


Let the Prospect Visualize. By H. L. Stanfield. 82 

When the Prospect Asks About the Cost. By Frederick 

A. Wallis . 82 

Cancelling the Mortgage. By William S. Thomas . 83 

Tact in Referring to Duty. By Nate Singleberry. 84 

The Graphic Method. By Edward A. Woods. 84 

Four Questions. By C. S. Morton . 85 

Inheritance Taxes. By E. S. Brashears . 85 

Budgeting Life Insurance. By J. S. Sherritt . 85 

Question of the Cost. By Frederick A. Wallis. 88 

Tell Your Prospect How to Create an Estate. By John 

J. Lentz . 88 

Take His Consent for Granted. By Harry D. Wright .. 90 

Insuring a Man’s Value, Not His Life. By Joseph W. 

Briggs . 90 

Argument Sells Nothing. By Edward A. Woods. 92 

Ways of Being Convincing. By C. A. Shaw. 93 

Discuss Price Last. By R. W. Stevens. 94 

7 




































TABLE OF CONTENTS 


When the Prospect Wants to Discuss Rates. By J. El¬ 
liott Hall . 94 

Discover His Motive. By George Salinger. 95 

Buying on the Installment Plan. By E. J. Dunn. 96 

The Impression on the Prospect’s Mind. By V. A. Young 97 

Big Price and Large Quantity. By L. R. Cushman. 98 

Don’t Talk Past the Signing Point. By A. J. Casise. 99 

Improving the Canvass. By R. P. Burns . 100 

Logic vs. Sympathy. By W. S. Walker . 101 

Holding Attention. By A. Gordon Ramsay. 102 

Both Sides of the Picture. By E. W. Nothstine. 103 

Controlling the Interview. By A. D. Anderson . 103 

When the Prospect Asks Questions. By Frederick A. 

Wallis . 104 

Don’t Be an Encyclopedia. By James E. Kavanaugh .. 105 
Questions to Ask the Man 'Who Cannot Make Up His 

Mind. By a Writer in Mutual Underwriter. 105 

Words that Convince. By A. R. Piper. 106 

Use of Tricks. By G. J. A. Reany . 106 

Creating Desire. By James C. Heyer. 107 

CHAPTER V 

MEETING OBJECTIONS 

Each Objection Brings Forth a New “Hook” in “Hook 

Canvass.” By Walter Farrell . 109 

Never Show Confusion. By William Alexander. Ill 

Do Your Thinking Before the Interview. By Darby A. Day 112 
When the Prospect Thinks I Am Overloading Him. By 

W. J. Olive . 113 

Only Three Things to Think About. By James F. Russell 114 

“Enough Insurance.” By Sidney A. Foster . 115 

Turning Objections Into Selling Suggestions. By John 

A. Stevenson. 116 

The Farmer’s Objection. By Carl A. Peterson. 117 

Objections Answered. By Thomas J. Stewart. 118 

Procrastination. By David Hattenbach . 119 

Story of the Wife Who Objected. By L. S. Mattison_ 119 

The Sample Policy Excuse. By H. W. Gennericli. 121 

The Balky Prospect. By a Writer in Mutual Underwriter 122 
Most Objections Are Only Excuses. By J. Stanley Ed¬ 
wards . 122 

8 



























TABLE OF CONTENTS 


An Objection No Reflection on the Salesman. By Dick 
Oliver . 124 

CHAPTER VI 

MEETING COMPETITION 

Backfire of Knocking. By W. J. Olive . 125 

A Friend in the Business. By John H. Marsching. 125 

Competitive Solicitation. By Charles W. Scovel . 125 

The “Actuarial” Salesman. By Stewart Anderson . 126 

Honest Man Has Few Competitors. By S. J. Rosenblatt 127 

Must You Tear Down Houses? By Plomer J. Hale. 128 

Salesman Personifies the Company. By E. J. Dunn. 129 

Arguing Against Estimated Dividends. By Harold Pearce 129 
Doesn’t Know Competitor’s Weak Points. By A. Gordon 

Ramsay. 130 

Forget All But Your Own Wares. By E. B. Houghton . 131 

Intelligent Competition. By Charles W. Scovel. 132 

No Competition in 90% of the Cases. By Paul M. Ray . 132 
Honorable Competition. By J. E. Matthews. 133 

CHAPTER VII 

CLOSING 

Mechanics of the Close. By C. J. Rockwell. 135 

Taking “Yes” for Granted. By L. C. Klein. 135 

Additional Policy. By B. R. Plotts . 136 

Let the Prospect Have It. By Oliver Thurman . 136 

Draw on Your Reserve Power. By Charles L. Sykes .... 137 
“Please Give Me Your Check.” By Stewart Anderson ... 137 

Workingman’s Family. By R. M. Westheimer. 138 

Request the Prospect to Tear Up the Application. By 

H. L. B. Skinner . 138 

When Not to Look Him in the Eye. By C. A. Shaw- 139 

Strategy in Closing. By George A. Rathbun. 139 

Never Say, “Sign Here.” By T. P. Regan. 140 

Closing at First Interview. By Parke N. Musser. 140 

The Affirmative Mood. By L. F. Henderson . 142 

The Third Period. By B. F. Fine. 143 

Convincing Ring Comes from Mental Attitude. By R. P. 

Burns. 143 

When “No” Closes a Case. By J. J. B. ...•••..<••••••• 143 

9 


























TABLE OF CONTENTS 


When to Close. By H. G. Royer. 144 

Wrap Them Up. By E. C. Budlong. 145 

Heart, Not Mind, Controls Desire. By A. J. Quigley ... 146 

Choking Off the Prospect. By G. K. Burns. 147 

Reasons for Cash with the Application. By T. Price 

Thomas. 147 

When to Close and How. By C. H. Hamilton. 148 

CHAPTER VIII 

SELLING WHOLE LIFE PROTECTION 

Ordinary Life Fits Any Man’s Insurance Needs. By J. 

Elliott Hall . 150 

Does Life Insurance Carry You? By R. W. Stevens .... 151 
Run Down the Cost; Run Up the Benefit. By D. C. Mac- 

Ewen . 151 

Good Old Argument. By J. M. Andrews. 153 

My First Insurance Lesson. By Albert Goldie. 153 

How Much Are You Worth? By Frank H. Sykes. 154 

Life Insurance Back of Every Farm Mortgage. By A. 

C. Larson . 155 

Proper Kind for the Farmer. By A. S. Elford. 156 


CHAPTER IX 
SELLING TWENTY-PAY LIFE 
Paying the Taxes on a $500 Income. By Frank H. Wheeler 158 
An Estate on the Installment Plan. By J. N. Easley . .. 158 

CHAPTER X 

SELLING ACCIDENT AND THE DISABILITY 

FEATURE 

Appraising the Value of the Total Disability Clause. By 


L. K. Tooker. 160 

Disabled Man a Burden. By James A. Fulton. 161 

The Leak in the Bucket. By Joseph Kenyon. 161 

New Business When Claims Are Paid. By Fred J. Krazeise 163 
Stopping Places Where the Close Can Be Made. By T. A. 

Keith . 164 

Indemnity for Loss of Earning Power. By H. G. Royer . 167 

Opening an Accident Solicitation. By E. J. Faulkner_ 169 

If the Salary Stops. By W. C. Harris . 169 

Prompt Collections. By G. N. Martin. 170 

10 




















TABLE OF CONTEXTS 


\\ Meeting Objections in Accident Solicitation. By a Writ¬ 
er in the Aetnaizer . 171 

•6 Creating Desire for Accident Protection. By J. G. Heyer 172 
7 Double Indemnity a Frill to Assist Solicitors. By Henry 
Moir. 173 

j CHAPTER XI 

SELLING OLD AGE PROTECTION 

Independence in Old Age. By James A. Fulton. 175 

Living to Enjoy Life Insurance. By Frederick A. Wallis .. 175 

An Effective Circular Letter. By George A. Smith. 176 

A Secure Investment. By William H. Harrison. 177 

Demonstrating Old-Age Income Contract. By Henry 

Kronshein and J. B. Oetting. 178 

Fires the Imagination. By G. J. A. Reany. 181 

CHAPTER XII 

SELLING MONTHLY INCOME 

Definite Proposition for a Busy Man. By Frank T. Mc¬ 
Nally . 182 

Support Through the Period of Dependency. By Charles 

W. Scovel. 183 

Man’s Confidence in His Wife. By J. Elliott Hall. 183 

Fourteen Reasons. By C. N. Berger. 184 

Creation of a Larger and Lasting Estate. By Frank H. 


Wheeler . 185 

A Stone Instead of a Wooden House. By Robert J. Mix . 186 
A Wolf Checkmated. By a Writer in Travelers’ Record . 187 

Demonstrating Sale to Father of Young Girls. By W. E. 


Bilheimer . 188 

CHAPTER XIII 

WORKING METHODS 

Work Among Winners and Doers and Be One. By Al¬ 
bert H. Curtis. 191 

Are You Getting the Most Out of Your Interviews? By 

F. A. G. Merrill . 192 

Action on First Interview. By Frank T. McNally. 193 

The Law of Compensation. By E. J. Dunn. 194 

Future Benefits from Satisfied Customers. By Edward C. 
Bendere . 196 


11 





















TABLE OF CONTENTS 


Woman Salesman Among Farmers. By Helen Rose 

Pegelow . 196 

Successful Career on Evening Calls. By R. L. Parks .. 197 

Notes on the Interview. By L. G. Saunders . 198 

Mailing Literature to Prospects. By F. L. Conklin .... 198 

Thorough and to the Point. By Marshall Butters. 199 

Taking Advantage of an Opportunity. By Frank H. Wil¬ 
liams . 200 

My Methods. By F. J. Fleming . 201 

Immediate Medical Examination. By George R. Craft . 202 

Real Opportunities. By Frank H. Sykes . 203 

Waiting for a Favorable Time. By Frank H. Sykes .. 203 

Don’t Be the Bashful Pig. By J. H. LaSance. 205 

Use the Mortality Table. By Grenville Howard .206 

Talk Fifty Per Cent Less Than Your Prospect. By Clif¬ 
ford Sloan . 206 

Value of the Quota. By M. J. Dillon . 207 

Where Do You Eat Your Lunch? By W. T. Grant.208 

Cutting Down Industrial Arrears. By William Colvin .. 209 

Love of Salesmanship. By Charles F. Dickinson .210 

Interview 100 Men a Month. By Frank E. Mowrey .... 211 

How Clark Made a Day of It. By E. C. Budlong.211 

Making Daily Reports. By H. O. Wilhelm . 213 

Production in Farming Communities. By Robert M. Work 214 
Where References Are Valuable. By John L. Havlin .. 215 
Public Pays for Guidance. By J. C. Maginnis.216 

CHAPTER XIV 

ADDITIONAL SERVICE 

Future of Your Young Men Clients. Author Unknown . 218 

This Plan Helps Later. By E. F. Colborn. 218 

A Talk When Delivering the Contract. By E. F. Colborn 219 
Fitting the Contract to the Buyer. By Howard Cox ... 220 
Combining Accident and Health with Life. By Robert 

Newman . 221 

Return Calls. By J. R. Macy . 222 

Choosing an Occupation for Mrs. Widow. By Goto 

Iiashimura . 222 

Benefactor of the Poor. By Darby A. Day .223 

12 






















CHAPTER I 


PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 

Success is No Accident. By Edward A. Woods. 

You go to a theater and see a wonderful play. You say it 
was perfect, that it held your attention every minute. Do 
you think those actors you saw and heard went out on the 
stage unprepared and spoke the lines of the characters they 
were representing? A building was erected, a well ventilated 
and well equipped theater building, built on a definite plan. 
A skilled man wrote the play, which was then examined and 
passed upon by critics. And then the persons who were to 
play the different characters of that play were carefully 
chosen, but after experienced players were selected they were 
drilled and drilled and drilled; the scenery and surroundings 
of each act were prepared and criticised, and the finished 
product that you saw was the result of the most careful 
thought and effort and the expenditure of thousands of dol¬ 
lars in preparation. And yet some of us will give a new 
man a rate book and expect him to walk into a man's office 
and sell him insurance, and then we wonder that he fails. 
Is it not a wonderful tribute to life insurance that we have 
sold so much? You people who have been in this business 
ten or fifteen years, is it not a wonder that people bought 
from us at all? 

Advantages of Thorough Knowledge. By William Alexan¬ 
der. 

The life man’s position is now like that of the lawyer, the 
doctor or the architect. The client does not wish to listen 
to a learned disquisition on the technicalities of the law, 
but nevertheless he would not employ as counsel a man who 
was not supposed to be learned in the law. The patient does 
not expect the doctor to lecture to him on physiology or 
surgery. He comes simply to be cured. The man who 
wants a home does not go to the architect to learn how to 

13 








SALES METHODS 


build a house. He explains his needs and leaves the archi¬ 
tect to do the work. 

One reason why the agent should be educated, therefore, 
is to enable him to think and act for his client. In short, 
he must be an expert in order that his prospect shall not 
be forced to acquire expert knowledge and detailed infor¬ 
mation about what to him will always seem a technical and 
intricate subject. 

There is another reason why the agent should be a trained 
expert—a reason quite as important as the one just stated. 
It is this: if he knows of his own knowledge that life in¬ 
surance rests on foundations as steadfast as the everlasting 
hills; if he fully appreciates its values; if he knows exactly 
how its wonderful achievements are accomplished, his en¬ 
thusiasm will be so great; his conviction will be so strong, 
that he will speak with convincing force, and his appeals will 
be absolutely irresistible in the vast majority of cases. 

Are You Licked? By Philip A. Nelson. 

I had not carried the rate book two months before the 
bottom dropped out of everything. In that time I had writ¬ 
ten my friends, and somehow I didn’t have the knack to 
solicit strangers successfully. I was ready to throw up the 
sponge. My luck had turned. I was the prize boob of the 
agency. 

Our agency manager is a good mind reader, and it was 
unnecessary to tell him that I was licked. He had some 
dope for fellows in just my fix. He pulled some clippings 
out of an upper corner pigeon hole. 

“My boy, do you know that Abraham Lincoln was a failure 
in life until a new political party took him up?” he asked. 

“And do you know that Woodrow Wilson went into the 
Baltimore convention realizing that he had small chance to 
be nominated? He had booked passage to Europe. 

“Phil Sheridan rode out of Winchester and met his men 
retreating. ‘We are beaten,’ an officer told him. ‘You are, 
but not this army,’ Little Phil roared. ‘Come on, boys.’ 

“General Grant sat at his desk in a field tent. The news¬ 
papers of the North demanded his resignation. President 

14 


PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


Lincoln was worried. Grant wrote, ‘I will fight it out on 
this line if it takes all summer.’ 

“My boy, the only person who can defeat you in this busi¬ 
ness is yourself,” concluded the general agent. “Around the 
corner is success just as important to you as the success 
that came to Grant. At one time he supported his family 
by cutting and peddling wood; around the corner was fame 
that will endure for centuries.” 

Building an Agency. By N. E. Spradley. 

The most successful and practical method used by the 
writer is endeavoring to make my system of assistance and 
co-operation so appealing to the insurance man that many 
of them apply voluntarily for contracts. In fact, the men 
themselves secure more new men by telling of their success 
than I do myself. 

In starting my organization I secured two men who were in 
other lines of work. They appealed personally to me on account 
of the fact that I knew they would work, and, knowing as I 
did that work was the secret of this business, I took these men 
into the office for a week, taught them the rudiments and con¬ 
struction of life insurance in general, the why and wherefores, 
caused them to become familiar with just two policies, and in¬ 
fected them with the insurance germ that is bound to come to 
a man of thrift. I would go into the field with them for a week, 
then leave them alone for awhile and watch their progress. They 
made good, for they worked. They would tell others, and I had 
many inquiries from their acquaintances. I would call them into 
the office for training, then send them out with one of the former 
two, and so on like an endless chain. 

It is not advisable to send a man into the field without such 
office training. 

At this writing I am getting more men than I can handle. It 
has come to such a point that I can do nothing else except the 
office training. The older boys in the field do the team work 
with the “youngsters,” and they profit also, for all new men have 
friends and all business is split with them. 

15 


SALES METHODS 


Our Responsibility to the Home, the Church and the School. 

By Howard Scott. 

What is our responsibility to these three great institutions 
what is our responsibility as ambassadors of the cause of life 
insurance, the one great protection business in all the world? It 
is our duty to see to it that when the time comes that the home 
must be broken up by the losing of the father or the mother, 
there is ample insurance in that home that will keep this sacred 
institution intact. I say then, the home is our personal respon¬ 
sibility through the cause of life insurance. 

The church today is blessed because in many instances some 
people have planned ahead and have felt their responsibility in 
planning protection that the church may go on and do its great 
work in this world. What a field this is! We should urge those 
that can afford it to buy insurance and to make this great institu¬ 
tion the beneficiary and protect it, because it is God’s own in¬ 
stitution. 

Have we responsibility to the school as insurance workers? A 
thousand times, I want to say, Yes. We represent a cause that 
stands in a class by itself for making possible the education of 
our boys and girls. What a fine thing it is for some father or 
mother to feel his responsibility so keenly that he has made pre¬ 
paration through life insurance for the education of that boy or 
girl who could not afford it under any other condition. When 
you and I fail to bring the great cause before the parents and 
make them understand and know that the day is coming by and 
by when they can no longer work, we have fallen short of meet¬ 
ing our own responsibility to the boys and girls of our land. 

What do we owe the teacher? When they have outlived their 
years of usefulness, shall their declining years be spent in ease 
or poverty? This question is yours to answer. Life insurance 
is the only answer. Sweet will it be for them if they can truly 
say: ‘Thank God, the insurance ambassador came along and 
helped me to see how I could provide for the declining days of 
my life.’ All this can be accomplished, if it is accomplished, be¬ 
cause you and I have met the great challenge of our task. 

Preparing for the Interview. By George T. Carlin. 

Every prospect is a problem in himself, depending on the cir- 

16 



PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


cumstances of the individual and his attitude toward insurance. 
It naturally follows then that there are certain preliminary steps, 
that must be taken before arriving at the point when we can show' 
our proposition, which vary with each prospect but all of which 
lead to the same end, namely, getting his name on the dotted line. 

Remember, all men reason alike, but different men reason from 
different motives. What then is each prospect’s vulnerable point? 
Why are you going to present your proposition to him? What 
particular need is it going to fill in his case? Unless these ques¬ 
tions can be answered by you before you see your case, you are 
not in a position to effectively present your proposition to him 
and your sales talk must necessarily be of a very general charac¬ 
ter and you must depend upon the interview bringing out the de¬ 
tails, which yould ordinarily induce your man to buy. 

In order to answer these questions it is necessary to ascertain 
something of the man’s financial status, the amount of insurance 
already carried, his importance in the organization of which he is 
a part or to the enterprise in which he is engaged, and such other 
information as can be secured. With this information at hand 
you are equipped to offer logical reasons why your commodity not 
only has a place in his daily life, but that it is a necessity there. 
With this information you are qualified to recommend the proper 
contract to meet his needs and the proper amount to fulfill his 
aims. 

Without the meager preparation given in the foregoing, your 
canvass must be a cold canvass and a cold canvass is a wild can¬ 
vass. While a cold canvass has its place, it should not be neces¬ 
sary for a salesman working a definite territory ever to make a 
cold canvass. Though you have never met your man personally, 
you should know him well through public records, newspapers, 
observation, hearsay, old members and your daily contact with 
men. 

This is partially what is meant by preparing for the interview. 
Try it and see if it is not profitable. 

Right Mental Attitude. By Willard K. Bush. 

I believe that every salesman should take a few minutes each 
morning to organize himself. In addition to making up his route 
for the day, it will pay him to get into the proper mental attitude 
2 ' 17 


SALES METHODS 


so he will start the day right. If he starts the day right, it is 
more apt to end satisfactorily. 

There are four little things which can be done in a few minutes 
to help start the day right: (1) To rid your mind of irrelevant 
thoughts, read some short article regarding the merits of in¬ 
surance or a stimulating and practical article on salesmanship. 

(2) Determine to make every interview during the day count. 

(3) Determine to do your level best to secure at least one appli¬ 
cation during the day. (4) Finally, start out with the thought 
that in addition to whatever money you earn during the day, you 
are sure to do the prospects you interview some good, as you 
are going to give them good, honest arguments as to why they 
should put a part of their annual budget into insurance for the 
future welfare of their dependents and themselves. 

How to Start the Week Right. By Harry M. Haven. 

It has often been said that “Work well begun is half done,” 
and certainly all of us know from personal experience the great 
value of a right beginning. The salesman who starts his day 
properly has gone far toward making it a success. As the suc¬ 
cess of our work on all the subsequent days of the week is 
greatly influenced by the way we start the first one, it is of es¬ 
pecial importance that we give particular attention to Monday 
morning. 

One of the most important factors in starting right on Monday 
is health. This depends to a great extent on the way in which 
we have spent our Sunday. In too many cases Sunday, instead 
of being a day when the physical and mental vigor is restored 
and the agent put in fine shape to begin another week of keen 
and intense work, is merely a day of broken routine, overeating, 
and lack of proper exercise. If we are to start Monday right, 
we must give attention to the way in which we spend Sunday. 
The end of the day should find us tuned up and toned up for a 
flying start. Above all we should see to it that our state of mind 
is right that we are alert, confident, optimistic, with bodies rested 
and minds refreshed. 

One of the best ways to start Monday right is by attending an 
agency meeting. This applies to older salesmen as much as to 
beginners; the latter need to be taught and the former need to be 
reminded and pulled out of ruts. All will be benefited by the 

18 



PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


contagious spirit of enthusiasm that is generated in an hour's 
snappy discussion of the problems that have to be met. Ever} 7 - 
one who attends should give according to his ability and experi¬ 
ence. There is no man or woman who has solicited insurance 
intelligently for even one week who cannot contribute a thought 
which will be of value or add to the sum total of enthusiasm. 

As soon as the meeting is over, get out. Start actual work 
when you are charged with enthusiasm and full of determination. 
Work steadily and hard, and when night comes, make a record of 
what you have done, whom you have seen, and what you have 
learned. Don’t put off doing this; write it out while it is still 
fresh in your mind. And then plan the work of the following 
day so that no time will be lost the next morning. Know whom 
you are to see and determine to see them. 

If you set aside eight hours for work, do not steal any of that 
time for anything else. You have sixteen hours left out of the 
twenty-four to devote to sleep, recreation and reading. Use 
this time wisely. Read the newspapers and keep well informed 
about the world’s events. Especially is it important to read one 
or two reliable insurance journals and to know what is happen¬ 
ing in your own business. An hour each day is given to the 
study of insurance problems or to business in general is well 
spent. The courses of certain institutes are of great value in 
putting a man in touch with the problems of modern business 
and can be studied with profit by any agent who is ambitious 
for wider service. 

Be determined to win. Analyze each interview and see just 
why you succeeded or failed. Resolve firmly to avoid the pitfalls 
that kept you from reaching the goal you had set for yourself. 

Strive to present your proposition and your personality in the 
best possible light. Be careful what impression you leave with 
the men upon whom you call. If you feel that they have not 
received the impression you wished them to receive study to learn 
what it was that caused your failure. 

Enlarging Scope of Life Salesman’s Field. By Frank L. 

Jones. 

We today need a foundation of economics and sociology in 
order to be real life insurance men and serve the public as we 
should. Before long people who go into life insurance will have 

19 


SALES METHODS 


to be trained masters of these subjects as well as the detail of 
the life contract and proposition. There are more books to be 
had today about chickens and cattle than about life insurance 
and allied subjects. But things are changing, and changing 
rapidly. 

In selling merely protection, we have been selling by indirection 
the real service we can and do render the public, and making it 
more difficult for ourselves to sell. 

If you went to men and told them you could guarantee that 
they would live to be 75 years of age, you could not sell a policy. 
But each man is an economic entity and the business of insurance 
is to project his life, work, ability and estate to the extent of 
the full three-score and ten, and you can sell him the means to 
accomplish this. 

Ten years ago you couldn’t insure, in such states as Indiana 
and Iowa, except for the benefit of blood relations. Today we 
insure for many other relationships, the principal ones including 
business relations. It is now recognized that the man has an 
economic value and that he can insure and otherwise proceed 
accordingly. 

The value of a man in these respects is threefold: Static, the 
value of the hour and the day; dynamic, the value of the power 
in motion through life, and potential, the value that is there and 
can and should be used. The prospect should be most interested 
in his potential value, in what he can create and save. 

A prospect can get a substitute for war service, etc., but he 
can’t get a substitute for his static, dynamic or potential value. 
He himself must serve out the fruitage of a life, or provide its 
equivalent. 

Necessity of Correct Advance Information. By B. A. Notzen 

To improve on the number of closed cases for interviews 
made, I suggest that you secure, before you have your interview, 
a full and complete knowledge of your prospect and the exact 
conditions existing with that prospect, so that you are in a posi¬ 
tion to intelligently present your proposition so that it will prop¬ 
erly cover him and the conditions existing with him. 

Let me illustrate this phase of the work by an experience I 
had that will bring out the point clearly to you:— 

I was doing joint work with a salesman who knew the ter- 

20 


PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


ritory, in which I was a stranger, so I depended on him to post 
me on the conditions surrounding the prospect. The first party 
I talked to was a farmer. The salesman told me this farmer 
was married, had one small child, owned 200 acres of land and 
owed $10,000 on the place, so I made my talk along this line: 
“Mr. Smith, about 90 per cent of business men make use of cred¬ 
it, so if you are using borrowed money in connection with your 
work, you are doing what the majority of business men are doing. 
Now, if I came to you as a banker and said, ‘Mr. Smith, you are 
now paying 6 per cent interest but if you will pay 9 per cent in¬ 
terest instead of 6 per cent, I’ll guarantee to cancel the debt in 
case of your death, and if in 20 years from now, when you are 
ready to retire, you pay off your debt, I’ll refund you 2 \ per cent 
of the interest so you will be out only 6J per cent interest instead 
of 6 per cent interest, would you be interested?”—“I might.” 
“All right, sir, then look here;” and I made my explanation of a 
contract and how it would cover him and his condition and it 
netted a $10,000 application. 

Leaving this man we went to his neighbor, the salesman say¬ 
ing that conditions were about the same. I made my introductory 
talk the same as in the first case, but this man said he would 
not be interested. I then dwelt at length on the advantage of 
having the debt paid immediately after the death of the bread- 
earner, without placing the burden on the shoulders of dependent 
and helpless survivors. I showed examples of property lost by 
the bread-earner’s premature death with indebtedness against 
the place that the survivors could not take care of and I made 
no impression, so, after an hour of fruitless work, I finally gave 
up and after leaving I expressed my disgust with the man for 
being willing to take a chance on putting such a burden on the 
shoulders of a helpless wife and babe. The salesman said, 
“Well, I guess it’s my fault for saying conditions were about 
the same; I meant he was a farmer and had a wife and child 
like Smith, but this man is not in debt, so your talk did not 
apply to him. In fact, he has just sold some land for $20,000 
and is now figuring on how to invest it.” Ye Gods! What a 
fool talk I made under those conditions. 

Specialize. By John G. Morey. 

All the big life business in this city is being written by men 

21 


SALES METHODS 


who give their entire time and attention to it. I don t believe 
a man can do really big business if he permits himself to be 
distracted by the varied details of other lines. T here is no more 
similarity between life insurance and fire insurance than there 
is between groceries and clothing in merchandising. It is 
true that everything from a casket to a mousetrap, from a loaf 
of bread to a bottle of perfume, can be and is handled in a depart¬ 
ment store and that each department of the big “emporium” is 
handled by an expert in his line, but you will notice at the same 
time that when a man wants a fine tailor made suit or a woman 
wants the supplies for a banquet, they don’t go to a department 
store. 

It’s the same way with doctors, lawyers, architects, engineers 
—big business insists on specialists in all professional lines and 
the life insurance business of today is just as professional in its 
character. No particular ability or profound knowledge is re¬ 
quired to initiate and complete a contract for a few thousand 
dollars, but when the complexities of college education, current 
indebtedness, partnership or corporation obligations, inheritance 
taxes, have to be adjusted and provided for, the salesman must 
know what he is talking about. He must know more than the 
man does with whom he is negotiating. 

Some men may be able to jump from the completion of a big 
life insurance contract to a discussion of full coverage collision 
on an automobile or from a $500 a month income policy to com¬ 
petition between a mutual and a stock for a big line of depart¬ 
ment store plate glass, but I don't believe he can be so success¬ 
ful as the man who confines himself to the one line and makes 
an intensive study of all its phases. 

** - 

For the New Salesman’s Wife. By Rollin H. Harris. 

Let’s follow a new salesman. He visits twenty people, or per¬ 
haps thirty, the first week with no result except that two or three 
agree to buy of him later on. Of course, there is nothing coming 
in for that week and there is an explanation to make to his wife, 
who feels it her duty to say what she thinks about life insurance. 
This naturally, does not create an amicable feeling between the 
two. That’s the first stumbling block. The salesman really 
feels sorry for her because she is unable to see things in the 
right light; which, of course, is as he sees them. 

22 





PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


However, Sunday comes and all day no word of cheer is 
spoken to the poor unfortunate husband and insurance salesman. 

On Monday morning the salesman quietly and thoughtfully 
leaves the house in such a frame of mind that he really should 
visit a physician. But, once in the air, he shakes off memories 
of the domestic scene and becomes an insurance man again, de¬ 
termined to do or die. He works hard all day, gets an app. for 
a $1,000 twenty year endowment, examination to be made that 
night. Rushing home he tells the good news to his wife. Often 
she is not pleased, but reprimands him in no gentle way for not 
having insured more people, while also she has something to say 
about his night engagement. He goes out; returns; spends a 
restless, sleepless night and in the morning again leaves the 
house w r ith as little friction as possible. At the office there is 
another shock. His prospect has a high blood pressure; no 
chance of getting by. With all these things on his mind, he starts 
out again with success to the extent of having several people 
agree to buy in the near future. Today has been a good day, but 
what is his wife going to say? He braces himself; goes home, 
where he receives the same greeting as before. 

Right here, let me say that a few kind words would be worth 
their weight in gold. One thousand dollars in real money would 
be the value of an encouraging reception at home, because the 
next morning the salesman would start out with a light heart and 
a determination to succeed, which will conquer all. An equal 
amount of good cheer and stick-to-it-iveness belongs to the wife 
for if she is not with her husband, his greatest obstacle is at 
home. She must understand that it takes time to create a 
clientele. 

I never have heard of any great success attained without hard¬ 
ship; or, to put it another way, anything attained without hard 
work and worry is not really a success, but luck. If one is to be 
a doctor or lawyer, it generally means ten or twelve years of 
pretty uphill business before there is a paying practice. One of 
the best lawyers in Louisville ran $14,000 in debt before he be¬ 
gan to make money. The insurance salesman does not have to 
wait so long. Two years should place him where he should be 
getting a substantial income. He is his own boss, is allowed to 
work where and when he likes, and has by this time learned he 
has “samples,” such as are possessed by no other salesmen; name- 

23 


SALES METHODS 


ly, his policy-holders, human beings, with minds and brains which 
will furnish him with material enough to keep him busy night and 
day. That is what I call success. 

Think this over, wives of new men in the business, and rest 
assured that every kind word and boost you give your husband 
will be worth a dozen applications, and don't forget you must 
pull together and struggle a year or two; and isn’t it worth it? 
The agent not only creates an everlasting estate for himself, but 
builds for his clients an estate that will not allow them to become 
dependent in their old age. 

Evangelism of Life Insurance. By Frank D. Shera. 

I don’t see any great evangelist or any great man in any line 
that accomplishes anything extraordinary unless they are deeply 
interested in the things which they are doing. Of course, a sensi¬ 
ble man can’t lose sight of the fact that he must handle the propo¬ 
sition so as to benefit the other fellow and benefit himself at the 
same time so that he may be respectable and take care of his 
family. Therefore, it is necessary to handle the proposition so 
as to get paid, but in selecting an agent I don’t pay very much 
attention to a fellow if I get the idea from the way he talks and 
the way he acts that he is in it absolutely and purely for the 
money that there is in it alone. The chances are that when he 
gets out against the real thing he will not be interested enough to 
get around the obstacles and will veer off and get into some other 
line of business because he will see a chance to make some money 
easier, and the result is he won’t stick long. 

I remember I heard a preacher down in Des Moines preach a 
sermon one time, and sometimes we hear men say things that we 
never forget. I have heard a good many sermons and a lot of 
them I have forgotten because there was not anything in them 
worth trying to remember. The man preached on the subject, 
“Burning Hearts.” He went through the pages of history and he 
showed the great things of the world that had been accomplished 
by men who were enthusiastic and were doing things because 
they liked to do them for the benefit of the people themselves and 
the community, and that that was what accomplished things. 

Now salesmanship, to my mind, consists of three things, first, 
you must have a thoroughly good article. Now when a man selects 
the thing he sells he shows his business ability. When 

24 


a man 




PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


selects the goods or the kind of insurance that he sells he bears 
the same relation to the business that the buyer in the department 
store bears to that business. I dare say that most of us would 
agree that it is necessary for the buyer in a department store, any 
large institution of that kind, to have foresight and understand 
what the people will want, look ahead, because if he gets the 
things there that the people are going to want and are going to 
be satisfied with after they get them, perhaps he can get fellows 
to sell the goods, but if he gets things that people will not want 
he will probably lose his clerks and they will go over to the 
store that does have things that people do want. Therefore the 
agent or the man who selects the company he works for shows 
his business ability when he does that thing. 

Then the next necessary requisite is to have a thoroughly good 
understanding of that article. Now life insurance to my mind 
is a very simple thing. I expect, however, when I first began to 
investigate it that it was not so simple and we ought not to for¬ 
get that a very large part of the people don’t know anything 
about it. It is just about as clear to them as mud. I think I re¬ 
member when that was about the case with myself, but of course 
I have been studying it for fifteen years. I had good tutors and 
I tried to absorb a good deal of knowledge, but we must not for¬ 
get that the other people do not know as much about it as we do. 

Therefore, if we get a salesman who is interested—I always 
like to get hold of one who will write me a letter every day for a 
week or a month, whenever he gets up against something, because 
if he will ask about it I am sure he will get all the help possible. 

Then the next requisite after having a thoroughly good article 
and a thoroughly good understanding of that article is to have 
what some people might call the sixth sense, have sense enough 
to know who ought to have that article and present it to the 
right fellow at the right time and tell the truth about it. When 
you do it in that way you have sold it. 

Faith an Essential. By O. E. Carter. 

Without faith it is impossible to please your prospect or obtain 
success—faith in your prospect, faith in the contract, faith in 
your company, and faith in yourself. 

I have seen a little bronze statute. It is that of an olden knight 
clad in a coat of mail. The knight stands with his head erect, his 

25 


SALES METHODS 


shoulders thrown back, and one foot slightly forward. A sword 
is buckled to his side. His right hand clasps the hilt of the sword, 
while with the other he holds the sheath. A look of confidence 
and fixed determination is written on his face. On the pedestal 
is the Latin word, “Credo,” “I believe!” It is the man who be¬ 
lieves, who dares and who does that succeeds as an insurance 
solicitor. 

The truly successful agent will keep abreast of his profession. 
He should be a student and reader. There is always danger of 
getting into a rut. A stereotyped canvass will not succeed with 
all classes. Versatility is necessary, and should be cultivated. 
This can be done best by reading current insurance periodicals 
and gathering new ideas from available sources, such as the 
weekly meeting of local agents and the general gatherings of un¬ 
derwriters. Not only should the insurance agent be a subscriber 
to and a reader of leading insurance periodicals, but he should 
read and digest the best of books treating of the subject, and 
these books are rapidly multiplying. From such sources he not 
only receives and imparts new ideas, but he imbibes a spirit which 
is often more valuable than the letter. Impulse and suggestion 
are often more helpful than information. An intelligent knowl¬ 
edge of current events is also a good quality to put into our “kit” 
of insurance information. A knowledge of what is happening 
in the local community and in the world of affairs often gets an 
interview, and what is better it is an index of an agent’s good 
citizenship. The agent who neglects to inform himself of the 
kaleidoscopic changes of present-day history is not a good citizen, 
or at least he appears so in the estimation of the average Ameri¬ 
can. 

Specialize. By L. Seton Lindsay. 

This is the day of specialists. Business and the professions 
have become so complex and many-sided that the all-around man 
has faded into the background. This is especially true in life in¬ 
surance, and the life insurance man who attempts to represent 
several different life insurance companies, and in addition to 
handle fire, accident, casualty, and other forms of insurance, 
never makes as great a success as the life insurance man who 
picks one good life company and devotes his whole time and 
thought to the business of that one company. 

26 




PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


Look around in your community, or among your associates, and 
you will soon find that the really representative life insurance 
men who are looked up to and respected are usually those who 
represent one life insurance company and devote their whole time 
to life insurance. 

It may be true, owing to circumstances, which it is not neces¬ 
sary to discuss here, that insurance brokers selling fire, casualty, 
accident, and other lines of insurance, find it convenient and prof¬ 
itable to represent a number of different companies, but this is 
not true in life insurance, and the agent who tries to make a profit 
out of side lines invariably gets himself tangled in a mass of 
routine work and details that soon interfere with his real busi¬ 
ness of selling life insurance. 

Your time is too valuable to waste a moment on side lines. A 
successful life insurance salesman has a peculiar ability that is 
not possessed or much developed by the average salesman in oth¬ 
er lines. So don’t waste that ability by spending your time in do¬ 
ing things that others can do just as well, and for a great deal 
less money than your time is worth. 

It will pay you to get a fire insurance man to attend to your 
prospects’ fire insurance needs; just as it will pay you to hire 
someone for three dollars a day to cut the grass and work around 
the house while you put your whole time into employing those 
special talents of yours in writing applications for life insurance. 

A Working Principle. By G. A. Boissard. 

We all know that the man who succeeds in the game of sales¬ 
manship is the one who keeps everlastingly at it and lest some 
of us forget, we call attention again to this important principle 
in insurance success—“continuity of effort.” Just as the engine 
that gets somewhere pushes or pulls steadily, and not imtermit- 
tently, so the man who persistently and steadfastly thinks and 
talks insurance, and day after day continues in his efforts to make 
men see, gets there always. The results follow just as sure as the 
growth of a plant follows the sunshine and rain. 

Developing New Men. By R. N. Mills. 

E. W. Marshall, agency manager at Oklahoma City, contributes 
some valuable ideas on how to secure and develop new salesmen 
who will become successful. His idea is not to make full-time 

27 


SALES METHODS 


salesmen out of them all at once, but to induce them to grow 
gradually in the profession. He secures the services of part-time 
men, with the understanding that their contracts are only tempo¬ 
rary and continuance depends upon their future action in taking 
up the work on a full-time basis. With this idea in mind, Mr. 
Marshall spends a great deal of his time with his new men and 
develops them to efficiency in salesmanship to the greatest possi¬ 
ble degree. He feels that at the first the proper schooling is se¬ 
cured and the proper spirit imparted, even without the men de¬ 
voting their entire time to the proposition from the very first. 
As they grow in usefulness and success, it is his theory that 
they should be very strongly urged to devote all of their time to 
life insurance salesmanship. Mr. Marshall has the following to 
say of the kind of men who should be picked out as candidates 
for regular full-time members in the profession of life insurance 
salesmanship: 

“The man to seek out for a full-time agent is the man who sees 
for himself a bright future in the business and wants to make a 
success at it. This man will put in the time, and overtime, make 
the sacrifices, and do the disagreeable things day by day that are 
necessary for success. This is the man I am looking for as a 
full-time agent, and, if I can find two of them each year, I think 
I have accomplished about all that is humanly possible for a 
manager to do.” 


Big Men Always Ready to Learn More. By H. G. Royer. 

If you are the sort of a man who won't take advice from any¬ 
one, you are going to miss many opportunities for help which 
would benefit you greatly. 

When a man grows a big head, feels he can get along without 
the assistance of anyone, and will not listen to suggestions, he 
has ceased to advance and others may soon note a decline in his 
effectiveness ana success. 

The really big man—the really successful man—is the one who 
is ever on the alert to get every little bit of knowledge possible to 
gain. 

The biggest men in the country hold conferences for the pur¬ 
pose of getting ideas of other men, and they hold meetings of 
their employees for the same purpose. You have an inflated idea 

28 


PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


of your own ability if you think you know more than the great 
world-renowned financiers. 

It is only the little fellow who has nothing more to learn. 

That big head of yours is costing you a lot of money. 

How much will you have to lose before you wake up? 

Necessity for Organization in Salesmanship. By V. A. Young. 

This government successfully floated five bond issues. Of 
course there was back of all of it the patriotic impulse on the 
part of the people to do their utmost to win the conflict in which 
we were engaged, but if the Secretary of the Treasury had sent 
a notice to the Post Office department to have the carriers 
throughout the country receive subscriptions for these Liberty 
Loans, do you think they would have over subscribed with no 
selling effort on the part of the people themselves? 

Certainly not. While every man who bought a bond, though 
he did so because his conscience urged him to do it, did it very 
largely because some neighbor came along and reminded him 
forcefully of his duty. 

And this neighbor did not happen along by chance. It was 
assigned to him as his task to see Mr. Brown, and Mr. Jones, 
and Mrs. Smith and to sell them Liberty Bonds. 

Do not overlook this phase of the Liberty Bond sales. 

Do not forget that they were actually sold through the exercise 
of a high type of salesmanship. 

To start with, every town and every hamlet, every country, 
every state, and every district in the United States was thorough¬ 
ly organized for the purpose of selling bonds. Advertising plans 
were made and put into operation long in advance of the actual 
selling. People began to talk about bonds and to figure buying 
possibilities. The newspapers discussed bond-buying as a duty 
and as a necessity. Orators talked about our obligations to our 
soldiers abroad, to our allies, and to the world. 

The result of it all was the over-subscription of every bond 
issue. 

Precisely the same selling plans have been used in many other 
campaigns involving the raising of funds for various charitable 
purposes and occasionally for a purpose not charitable, and al¬ 
ways the organization plan has won. 

29 


SALES METHODS 


Why are we talking about this? 

Oh, merely because some organizer may get a little lesson 
from it. 

The lesson is so obvious that we won’t attempt to point it out, 
but in passing, we want to remark that we once knew a man to 
make a great success of a series of musical festivals, and when 
asked where and how he got his ideas, he said he picked them up 
at a cattle show. 

Working Rules of a $700,000 Producer. By J. J. Parker. 

To convince you must believe. 

You don’t need a telescope to see if you think. 

Good habits and proper food generate the steam that drives the 
piston rod of energy. 

Contentment is all right but it leads to rust and not to progress. 

Don’t overplay your hand—people get tired. 

The easy way is to toxic—it kills ambition. 

Frankness backed by knowledge makes selling simple. 

Co-operation is the law of life and growth. 

Do more than you are paid for—it brings more pay. 

Throw the picture of your business on the prospect’s brain 
screen—then watch him come. 

The man with the original thought is a lap ahead of the other 
fellow and gets the big pay. 

Edison, Marconi and Bell dreamed—they gave us electricity, 
the wireless and the telephone. Are you a dreamer? 

A $25,000 job goes to the man who can fill it, not to the man 
who wishes he had it. 

Effort well directed and to a successful conclusion makes for 
the joy of life. 

You can’t lift yourself by your boot-straps, but you can climb 
high if you don’t watch the clock. 

A boaster never impresses—he fades. 

Procrastination will make you, in time, a full partner of gen¬ 
eral debility. 

Hustle is in the head, not in the feet. 

A neat appearance may bring a good commission. 

Men who shirk—in the long run fail. 

Parker says that it isn’t any harder to sell a policy for $100,000 
than one for—say—$1,000. “But it’s harder to find $100,000 pros^ 

30 


PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


pects, ’ he says, “and the competition for them is keener. The 
reason more salesmen don’t sell $100,000 polices is because they 
think in terms of $5,000.” 

Parker considers the opening or approach the point at which 
a sale is made or killed. “Too many salesman give their pros¬ 
pects a chance to turn them down before they have presented 
their proposition,” he continued, “No man likes to change his 
mind. If I were to ask, k Are you interested in taking out some 
life insurance? and the man answered ‘No,’ I would consider my 
opportunity to sell him had vanished. Therefore, I always try to 
ask questions to which the answer must be ‘Yes.’ 

“When you come to analyze the qualities that go to make up a 
good salesman you have a hard task, and whatever you say will 
seem commonplace. And so I am going to say a very common¬ 
place thing: The prime requisite of a salesman is health. Think 
of all the crack salesmen you ever knew, and nine times out of 
ten, I dare say, they are men who glow with health. 

“The man who gets plenty of sleep, doesn’t overeat, and keeps 
himself will groomed is not only prepared to do a full day's work, 
but he will get a hearing where the dyspetic, sleepy or bloated 
fellow will get a turn down. 

“Prosperity is a great leveler because most men can stand so 
little of it. When they reach a certain point they get lazy, over¬ 
eat, go in for night life, and that’s the last you hear of them.” 

Personality Your Display Case. By E. H. Marshall. 

Personality is something which is hard to define—it is that 
something which naturally attracts to one man—inspires confi¬ 
dence and trust in another—and arouses suspicion of or disgust 
in a third. 

This tangible reflection of character, this atmosphere or condi¬ 
tion called personality, is created by each individual according to 
his capacity for development, as a result of character, disposi¬ 
tion, frame of mind, and outward appearance. 

In every phase of practical life, certain personal requirements 
are imperative if effort is to be crowned with success. These re¬ 
quirements concern body, dress, personal style, language, self- 
mastery, business conduct and savings or increase of capital. 

In the selling of life insurance it is of the utmost importance 
to give some thought to these vital factors. More often than 

31 


SALES METHODS 


not, we are trying to close men whom we have never seen before, 
just as we try to size up a prospect, he is trying to judge us, and 
upon his judgment depends our success and the success of the 
company. All he sees is the representative. The merchant 
spends hundreds of dollars for fixtures, furnishings, etc., to prop¬ 
erly display his merchandise. You prefer to do business with the 
successful merchant in a neat, up-to-date store. The man’s per¬ 
sonality is conveyed to you in the manner in which he conducts 
his business. 

To measure up to the fullest extent of success, a man must be 
keen intellectually. If you have worries don’t carry them around 
with you. It shows in your face, hinders your work and clouds 
your personality. Gloom is contagious. If you disseminate 
gloom, the prospect doesn’t know why, but your proposition 
doesn’t interest him. Be sincere. That does not mean be artificial. 
Smile no matter how painful. It becomes a habit and makes the 
hardest case easier. Take an interest in your work. Keep posted 
on your own job—that is only another way of making the job 
take an interest in you. The habit of industrious thinking makes 
things easier. Some real thought of the prospect and his prob¬ 
lems and his uses for your goods, makes them come easier. You 
are interested in the man, his work, family, etc., naturally he is 
interested in you and your work. Mutual interest spells success. 
It is not the loss of sleep nights, but sleeping in the day time 
that makes the job hard. 

Driving Away Fear and Worry. By Charles R. Posey. 

There is no tonic, there is no teaching, there is no driving 
force, which in any way approximates the realization on the part 
of the man that he will he what he ivants hard enough to be and 
that as a matter of fact he is today what he really wanted to be, 
and that no hereditary trait, no tendency gained from environ-, 
ment or education, or the lack of environment or education, but 
that can be overcome by his will, and that if he honestly, earn¬ 
estly tries to give the better part of himself a chance, that that 
bigger, better and nobler side will predominate over all indiffer¬ 
ent tendencies and shortcomings. I will say in passing that I 
would infinitely prefer to treat with men who have overcome, 
men who have had some big thing which they have conquered 

32 



PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


than to deal with the individual for whom everything has been 
made smooth and easy. 

I have found that the greatest obstacles in the way of success 
of practically every man are the twin evils of fear and worry. A 
man who worries will soon begin to fear. However, you must re¬ 
member that you cannot drive worry and fear from the human 
heart by simply saying, “be gone.” It is necessary that you put 
something in the place of these negative thoughts, so we endeavor 
to inject courage, hopefulness and cheerfulness in the place of 
fear and worry. 

I try to get a salesman to see that he must quit blaming others 
for what has happened to him, to make him realize that the cause 
of that which has happened to him is himself, that he is one of 
God’s creatures with a mind and heart and, above all, a divine 
soul, that he can succeed if he wills to succeed and that the dif¬ 
ference between failures and successes is courage. I make him 
see that it is cowardly and contemptible to undertake to account 
for the success of others by ascribing to them all sorts of sharp 
practices, including rebating, and so forth. I make him see that 
the normal man is courageous, hopeful and cheerful and that 
consequently he should keep his mind and body normal, and that 
he can easily accomplish this by a liberal use of fresh air and 
pure water, proper hours of sleep and rest, and, above all, a 
proper selection of his food. / believe that food has been the 
cause of more incompetence than any one thing in the world. A 
great many men eat a hearty meal in the middle of the day, 
smoke two or three black cigars, then immediately begin to be¬ 
moan the dullness of business and the hopelessness of things in 
general. 

Ruined by Office and Roll Top Desk. By Horace W. Carey. 

If it is true that “many a good mechanic has been lost by mak¬ 
ing of him a poor preacher,” it is equally true that many a good 
insurance salesman has been ruined by getting him an office and 
a roll-top desk. What a traveling salesman wants of an office is 
something I never comprehended. People don’t come to an office 
to be insured—if they do, look out for them. If they come to 
pay premiums once a month, it is cheaper to collect it personally 
and get a chance of writing some new business among friends 
and acquaintances of the policyholders. I always feel like weep- 
3 33 


SALES METHODS 


ing when some one of our men begins to talk of an office and a 
roll-top desk, for I know that we will soon be parting from a 
dear friend. His early loss is certain and sure. 

Not all the offices, advertising schemes, buttons, prizes, bill¬ 
posting and literature obtainable, can produce the results that 
come from the plan of operation, which might be entitled “So 
Many Calls for a Day’s Work,” and steadily continued, day after 
day, putting in the same amount of energy and time that would 
be required if engaged on a wage basis in any other line. Like 
salvation, it is the only plan under Heaven whereby an insurance 
salesman can be saved, and moreover, it is pleasant work when 
success comes with it. I sometimes wonder if the successful men 
among the field men realize how often the home office people envy 
them their ability and results. 

Setting Up Exercises in Salesmanship. By Stewart An¬ 
derson. 

There is nothing like variety to make and keep a man’s mind 
pliable and adaptive, qualities valuable in salesmanship. For this 
reason it pays the agent to tackle occasionally the unremunerative 
case in which he will need pleas and arguments and personality 
elements that are not called forth in the type of case which per¬ 
haps he makes his specialty. Wrestling with the petty and the 
unusual develops patience, poise and readiness, qualities not al¬ 
ways drawn upon when canvassing the big, acquiescing man, but 
for which there may suddenly come a need in such a case. The 
athlete does not confine himself to a single exercise, nor the 
musician to one exercise; the mental athlete and artist should be 
equally all-round in his “setting-up exercises.” 

Selling Yourself, Your Company and Your Goods. By C. I.. 

Minshall. 

In order to sell life insurance successfully, the first thing nec¬ 
essary is to sell yourself, not life insurance. But sell yourself, 
your work, your company, your plan, and the policy that you are 
going to sell the other fellow, and sell yourself so completely, 
that even an insinuation from any one that you -were wrong on 
any one of the above points that you would be ready to actually 
fight if it becomes necessary, then you are prepared to sell life 
insurance successfully. 


34 




PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


In order to become a star you must be able to make three 
sales: hirst, sell yourself to the prospect. By this I mean, every 
minute that you are in his presence, be a gentleman, be earnest, 
talk to him so that he is bound to think to himself: “This one 
is different from any agent that ever called on me.” Know your 
stor 3 r so well that you can present a life insurance policy so that 
he will want it. 

Second, sell your company. Make him believe that it is exactly 
what 3 r ou know it to be, “The best company that writes life in¬ 
surance.” You can easily do this, if you will explain the com¬ 
pany’s safety, show him why its stability is beyond question. 
Show him that by their careful selection of risks wh>' it is pos¬ 
sible for them to write the wonderful policy that they do. Talk 
service to him. If you will do these three things, 3 'ou can not 
only sell him, you can make him like you and your company so 
well that he will want every friend of his to have a policy like 
his, and when you can do this 3 T ou will have an endless chain 
started that you will never have to wonder where to go. 

Third, sell him insurance. If you have successfully made the 
first two sales, your most hardest work on the third will be mak¬ 
ing out the application. 

\ > 

Study. By L. G. Saunders. 

If an agent sets aside 3 hours a week for intensive study on 
salesmanship from books of merit, in a year’s time he has put in 
156 hours of real study. In five years he has studied 780 hours. 
The average lecture hours per week in a college course are 15 
hours. Fifteen hours divided into 780 is 52 weeks, equal to a 
year and a half of real study at college. And the 3 hours a week 
are hours used to help an agent rise to the top round of the in¬ 
surance ladder. Some agents study 6 hours a week which in 5 
years is equivalent to 3 years required for a law course. All 
agents should give this arithmetic test a tryout. 

Organize Yourself. By Willard K. Bush. 

I believe that every salesman should take a few minutes each 
morning to organize himself. In addition to making up his route 
for the day, it will pay him to get into the proper mental attitude 
so he will start the day right. If he starts the day right, it is 
more apt to end satisfactorily. 

35 


SALES METHODS 


There are four little things which can be done in a few minutes 
to help start the day right: (1) To rid your mind of irrelevant 
thoughts, read some short article regarding the merits of insur¬ 
ance or a stimulating and practical article on salesmanship. (2) 
Determine to make every interview during the day count. (3) 
Determine to do your level best to secure at least one application 
during the day. (4) Finally, start out with the thought that in 
addition to whatever money you earn during the day, you are 
sure to do the prospects you interview some good, as you are 
going to give them good, honest arguments as to why they should 
put a part of their annual budget into insurance for the future 
welfare of their dependents and themselves. 

Your Mental Storehouse. By G. J. A. Reany. 

Ordinarily, you get your knowledge through objective mind— 
the five senses—but that knowledge is retained in the subcon¬ 
scious mind which becomes your mental storehouse so that you 
can recall at the proper time the knowledge you have packed 
away. The properly balanced mind is the mind in which there is 
a synchronous action between these two parts of the mental fac¬ 
ulty, that is, clear reason and a perfect memory, and the man who 
has these two things properly developed is what the world calls 
a genius. Such was Napoleon, for instance, and such was Shake¬ 
speare. It is a wonderful thing for any man to have these two 
parts of his mind properly developed. I want to give you one or 
two illustrations. On one occasion Henry Clay was called upon 
in the Senate to reply to an opponent on an important question. 
Clay was really too ill to speak, but is was necessary that he make 
some response. He asked his friend who was sitting beside him 
to give him warning in two minutes, that he might stop, for the 
sake of his health. By the time the two minutes were up Henry 
Clay was aroused and was pouring forth a torrent of eloquence. 
His friend plucked his coat and finally a pin was brought into 
requisition but with no effect. At the end of two hours Clay 
glanced at the clock, happened to see the time he had been speak¬ 
ing and dropped back into the arms of his friend. That is an 
illustration of this fact, that a man who is called upon to answer 
a question on which he is informed can call upon his mental 
storehouse for the facts without any present preparation. Your 
objective mind makes the logic, not the subjective mind and Clay 

36 


PREPARATION OF THE SALESMAN 


was able to, because of the things he had packed into his mind 
through the work of his objective faculties, to pour them out and 
give them to his opponents. 

\ ou would be lost if you did not have a mental storehouse. 
Your subjective mind holds in store that which your objective 
mind has supplied. 

First—A life insurance salesman must have a knowledge of the 
life insurance business. That knowledge must be imbibed and 
packed away in the sub-conscious mind till the proper time. Sec¬ 
ond—he must have a knowledge of sales methods, which is not 
hard to get these days. A man could profitably catalogue in a 
scrap book arguments under various headings which can be ob¬ 
tained in many ways, for example, some splendid ideas and argu¬ 
ments may be culled from the Life Underwriters News. Then 
when you are preparing a case in which you expect to sell, you 
can turn to the book and refresh your memory. In the years 
1919 and 1920 a salesman could get along fairly well sometimes 
without much knowledge, but every life insurance company 
knows that we are past that now. There never was a time in 
the history of life insurance when there was so surely a necessity 
for a scientific knowledge of sales methods for life insurance 
men. We have got to do it now; we never had to do it before, 
and the outstanding salesmen of America are the men who have 
familiarized themselves with methods. 

What is the psychology of a sale with reference to the subjec¬ 
tive? It is the registering of the passions and impressions of 
your mind upon the subconscious mind of the prospect; it is the 
lighting of the natural fire with your coals. One of the finest 
salesmen in America, when preparing a large case gains all the 
information he can about his prospect, then goes to a room and 
absolutelv alone soends two, three, six. eight hours in preparation 
centering upon the one subject on which he is basing the appeal, 
he outlines the canvass. Do you know that the man who does 
that kind of thing, by the very laws of nature, by his very mental 
make-up becomes an enthusiast for the placing of that policy to 
fit the needs of the man. lie is so'full of the thing that he can¬ 
not fail to leave an impression upon his prospect. 

37 


CHAPTER II 


FINDING PROSPECTS 

Sources of Prospects. By Robert D. Lay. 

Street car conversation, table talk, any occasion unconnected 
with business will often divulge information of the utmost value 
to the discerning salesman. Membership lists of clubs may be 
consulted to advantage, likewise those of lodges, church organ¬ 
izations and civic bodies contain the names of men who are in 
position to pay for life insurance. It is well to read the society 
news of your home paper. You may find that some policyholder 
of yours has been the guest of a man you want to insure, and 
you may get from him a card of introduction just when it will 
do the most good. The year books of private schools and the 
lists of public school graduates will suggest the names of young 
persons whose parents ought to provide for them with monthly 
income policies. 

Directory companies in almost every city prepare selected lists 
of property owners, householders, or auto owners in the wealthy 
or middle class neighborhoods, and furnish names of trades 
people and professional men known to enjoy substantial incomes. 
The files of trust companies and title companies, and the re¬ 
corder’s office contains “tips” for the resourceful solicitor. 

Practically all concerns of any prominence publish house papers. 
If a piano salesman should read in the Federal News that sales¬ 
man Smith paid for $100,000 of life insurance in one month he 
would consider that a pretty good lead. The house organs of 
firms in other lines of business contain information quite as valu¬ 
able to the life salesman. These papers report the records of 
salesmen, births, promotions and other development which brings 
employes into the insurance market. 

And the trade papers or journals, which report trade con¬ 
ditions, are excellent guides. When real estate journals tell of 
brisk business they also mention who is getting the sales, and 
who is buying. It all involves money, an exceptionally good 
symptom from an insurance standpoint. Such papers as the 
following offer fine leads to the discerning agent: The Realty 

38 


FINDING PROSPECTS 


Weekly, The Economist, Builder and Contractor, Cement Review, 
Commercial Bulletin, Oil Age, Mining News, Oil and Gas, Print 
Shop Talk, Contractor and Manufacturer, Automobile Acces¬ 
sories, Shoe Dealers' Review, National Cash Register News. 

Every locality has similar publications which contain various 
news items of firms and individuals who are enlarging their 
business have had an exceptionally busy season, secured big 
contracts, increased their capacity, or experienced some change 
which would make them good prospects for life insurance. 
Medical journals tell of recent appoints of physicians to hospital 
staffs, meaning added income and greater need for life insurance. 

Old Clients Are Best Prospects. By W. J. Olive. 

For 20 years I have concentrated most of my selling efforts 
on old clients. Last year 70 per cent of my business came from 
them, and I had a renewal record of 99i per cent to my credit. 

In the first place old policy holders are easier to sell. I know 
all about them, what they are doing, about how much money 
they are earning, what responsibilities they have, and how they 
are situated. This information I got when I sold them before. 
Consequently, I can go to a man who is already on my books 
and talk to him intelligently. By what I say I can make him 
understand that I am familiar with his situation, know what he 
needs in the way of life insurance and I can offer something 
that just fits his own individual case. I don’t have to feel my 
way along in making the solicitation. I know all about the man 
that I am talking to, and so I can get right to the point without 
stalling around and wading through a lot of preliminary con¬ 
versation. 

When I talk to an old member about taking out more life 
insurance, he usually says something like this: “Nothing doing, 
Olive. You sold me all I can carry the last time. You loaded 
me up to the top. I believe in life insurance and like your 
organization and the contract you sold me, but there is no 
chance of my taking out any more. I can’t afford to spend 
another cent for life insurance.” 

I expect an old client to say something of that kind. It is 
the natural excuse to offer for not being interested in taking 
additional life insurance. But no man likes to admit that he is 
no better off than he was a year or two ago. When a man tells 

39 


SALES METHODS 


me that he is carrying all the life insurance he can afford I 
manipulate the conversation around to the point where it becomes 
necessary for him to say flatly whether he is any better oft than 
he was when I sold him the last time. Most men dislike to 
admit that they are not progressing. They will not say out¬ 
right that they are no better off than they were. Certainly no 
man will claim that his circumstances are exactly the same. 
There has been some change. Perhaps he has new obligations. 
Maybe there has been an addition to his family. Pie may be 
buying a home on the partial payment plan. He may even have 
borrowed money, and in that way incurred an additional obliga¬ 
tion. If he has done any of these things he needs more life 
insurance to cover. 

If an agent believes in himself, the organization he is repre¬ 
senting, and the contracts he is selling, he cannot help feeling 
that he has a much better chance with old policyholders. They 
know him and are familiar with what he does for them in the 
way of personal service. Old policyholders never have to hesitate 
about the character of the salesman who comes around to sell 
them again. They know their man. Of course, a salesman 
should be getting new accounts on his books all of the time 
and enlarging his circle, but there is a very large amount of 
business to be written among old members. When you come 
right down to it the man who is actually overinsured is a rare 
bird indeed. 

Working with Bankers. By E. W. Nothstine. 

The average banker does not have time to sell insurance, and 
you should be the trained salesman to look after his prospects 
and arrange to make regular trips to close up the prospects he 
finds for you. Three-fourths of the average salesman’s time is 
put in finding the proper people to talk to; that is, men who can 
pass, pay, and are in need of more protection. Mr. Banker 
knows his people and their needs; he has knowledge that you 
lack and there is every reason for a combination of knowledge 
and ability in order to accomplish the best results with the least 
possible lost motion. He should be shown how, by giving you 
his hearty co-operation, it will pay him dividends on time and 
information, that would otherwise be non-productive of from 
two to five thousand dollars per year. 

40 


FINDING PROSPECTS 


Immediately upon convincing him that it will be to his interest 
to co-operate with you, the next big and important step is to 
write a nice volume of business in his vicinity, thereby securing 
results that will make him enthusiastic. 

Get New Leads When Delivering Policies. By W. W. Wil¬ 
liamson. 

I aim to get a new lead or two through every application I 
write. After delivering the policy and when about to close the 
interview I say: 

“Mr. Codington, having done you a service that I believe you 
think is worth while, do not fail to let me do a like service to 
others whom you may know. You do not know the affairs of 
your friends and neighbors, but you do know this, that when 
one of them dies the first question you think to ask is: 

“ ‘I wonder if he left any life insurance.’ 

“If you find he has, it greatly pleases you. If you find he 
hasn't or has only left a little, you feel as though some one 
had neglected him. 

“Do you know of some one personally to whom I may go and 
offer my service?” 

The advantage in asking for only one is that if you state 
the question in the plural he is very apt to say that he cannot 
think of any one, simply because you have thrown his mind out 
into the entire circle of his acquaintance and he is at a loss to 
know whom he can name. But if you ask for one, his mind will 
revert to some one of his friends and he will give you his name, 
and after that one he will think of more, and you will come 
away with two or three. 

Moreover, it shows that you are not trying to ask him for all 
that he has in him. 

Sometimes it pays not to ask this favor until your next call 
upon him, and make that special cause of your call. But it can¬ 
not ever hurt to try it at the time you deliver the policy. He 
has an attitude of appreciation for what you have done. 

Another good plan is to explain to him then or at another 
time our circularizing system, if that is the way you got him. 
Ask him if you may not circularize some of his friends, and if 
they answer, you will call upon them. If they don’t you won’t. 
Put the whole subject to him in such a way as to appeal to him 

41 


SALES METHODS 


as though he were doing a favor to his friends. If he says he 
will speak to some of his friends and let you know, tell him 
that you would rather he would not do that. J hat you cannot 
sell his goods and he cannot sell yours, and that the art of 
approaching a man on the purchase of life insurance is such 
that it cannot be handled as most other commodities are handled. 

If he says he will think it over and send you a list, tell him 
you appreciate his thoughtfulness, but not to put himself to that 
bother, but to just give you one name now and let that suffice. 

How Shall We Create Prospects? By Theodore A. Waltrip. 

There are four or five answers to this question. 

1. We create and may find prospects by reading. Reading the 
daily papers, the trade journals, the house organs, the advertise¬ 
ments that appear in these, the record of vital statistics, mar¬ 
riages, births, deaths, the mortgage releases, the announcement 
of new firms, the hotel registers, the society columns, and in 
fact every page of the daily and Sunday paper bristles with 
prospects. 

2. One can secure prospects by observation. The live sales¬ 
man will keep his eyes open. He will note the changes in busi¬ 
ness, the new stores, new banks, new buildings of every de¬ 
scription. He will see the contractor, the builder, the painter as 
well as the proprietor of the new plant or building. The keen 
observer will keep his eyes on the ambulance, the hearse, the 
fire wagons, the construction train, the baby carriage, for wher¬ 
ever these wheels stop there is a chance to write insurance on 
the first interview. 

3. By friendliness and sociability. The friendly salesman will 
be friendly with his friends. He will make each one he writes 
the beginning of an endless chain method. There is no reason 
why business should not be based on friendship and friendship 
based on business. If our friends are not our prospects they 
should put us in touch with people who are or will be. 

4. Perhaps the surest way to secure prospects is to go out on 
a straight canvass and search for them. To meet as many 
people as one can and cultivate all he sees who are probably 
prospects is a splendid rule. It is no more improper to ask 
a man who sits next to one in a street car his name and address 
than it is the man who has given you a ride in his automobile. 

42 



FINDING PROSPECTS 


It is easy to go from office to office picking the prospects that 
are ripe. Many people are waiting for the salesman to call. 
It is not so easy to find the prospects in the bud, all closed up 
with no sign of opening, but if the salesman has the patience 
to wait until the light of reason and the warmth of love, and 
the glow of enthusiasm has been brought to bear on the prospect 
he will find it less difficult. 

Whatever the method used in securing prospects, whether by 
reading, observation, friendliness or the straight canvass, there 
must be a desire awakened or created for the contract one has 
to sell or there will be no sale. 

Getting and Cultivating a Clientele. By J. B. Duryea. 

Many beginners seem to think that “prospect’' and “acquaint¬ 
ance,” are synonomous words. I have frequently heard them 
say: “I do not think I can write insurance here because I am 
not acquainted.” And I have known life insurance rate-book 
carriers to spend a lot of time getting acquainted with people 
before broaching the subject of insurance. I am going to dis¬ 
pose of the question of acquaintance in one short sentence: 
Any mail who makes personal acquaintance a condition precedent 
to talking insurance has not yet grasped the first faint conception 
of the great service of life insurance. Such a one becomes the 
“pest” and “bore” who hounds the victim until he takes a 
little $1,000 policy to get rid of the fellow who thinks he has 
made a sale. 

Prospects are obtained from many sources, varying with the 
characteristics of the salesman, the locality of the work, and 
the conditions under which he works. Many of these sources 
are not available to the beginner, nor to a salesman starting in 
a new field. 

Therefore, we will assume a source of prospects that is 
accessible to a beginner starting to work in a city of 50,000 
people and up, and to make the illustration more concrete I 
W'ill describe a list of prospects I am now cultivating in San 
Francisco. My list contains 6,000 names. 

1. I secured the San Francisco list of men worth $50,000 and 
up from Boyd’s City Dispatch, 19 Beekman Street, New York 
City. This list is known as Boyds List. (A similar list may 
be obtained for any city or state.) I examined this list and 

43 


SALES METHODS 


carefully compared it with the city directory making corrections 
of occupation and addresses. In doing this work, I eliminated 
a number of names for various reasons, and I also eliminated 
all the women on the list. 

2. 1 made a prospect card for all the names on the corrected 
list. These cards were out from paper 3x5 inches in size. The 
word “Boyd's” with the necessary signs to denote the wealth 
of the man, was written on the first line at the extreme left- 
hand top of the card, and the name of the city^, San Francisco, 
on the right-hand side. On the left-hand end of the second 
line I wrote the name of the prospect, and put the residence 
street address on the right-hand end of the line placing a small 
“r” in front of it. The third line contains the occupation under 
the name and the business address under the residence address. 
These three lines occupy ? of an inch on the upper edge of the 
card, thus leaving the rest of the card—including the back—for 
recording data regarding the prospect, and the results of inter¬ 
views. Upon completing this work I found I had about 2,000 
names of wealthy men, with the rating of each. 

3. I then rechecked the names with the city directory marking 
the names with a red pencil in the directory, and writing the 
first name of the wife—when given—in parenthesis, on the first 
line of the card above the man’s name. 

4. I next took the San Francisco Blue Book and checked the 
names of the “San Francisco List,” and some of the clubs, 
with the directory, marking out all names already obtained from 
Boyd’s list and also eliminating all single men and women. 

5. I then made prospect cards of the names thus selected 
from the Blue Book and marked these in red pencil in the 
directory, and added the wife’s name, and recorded the name 
of his club, or clubs. 

6. Next I put the two lists together in alphabetical order in 
an alphabetical file, and found I now had about 4,000 names of 
wealthy and prominent men, nearly all of whom I knew were 
married. 

7. In the same way I obtained a list of the members of the 
Commonwealth Club and worked into my list selected names 
not already included. 

8. I then took a blue pencil and went through the city directory 
marking the names of men, not already red-pencilled, whose 

44 




FINDING PROSPECTS 


occupation indicated that they were active and possible buyers 
of insurance. This added another 1,000 names. (The city 
directory is, of course, one I bought for this private use.) 

9. I then went through our cards and added another thousand 
names, thus making a total of 6,000. 

The reason I compiled such a large list was because I want to 
use it in giving the men in our field force names to work on. 
If I were a soliciting agent making the list for my exclusive 
use I should pursue practically the same course but would select 
my names with perhaps more care, and stop when I had any¬ 
where from 500 to 1,000 names. 

A list obtained in this way is merely the beginning of a 
potential clientele. It is a great deal like the desk of a man 
starting in a new business—well varnished but empty. But we 
have something on which to work. As the work of cultivating 
these men into possible customers progresses, new names will 
be added from many sources and old names eliminated for 
various reasons. 

In Mortgage Records. By G. L. Stearns. 

In nearly every city there are issued weekly or monthly, 
either by the local board or by private individuals, lists which 
give the names of persons who have recently mortgaged prop¬ 
erty. Why not use these lists to secure the names of prospects? 
A man more readily sees the need of life insurance when he is 
face to face with debt and realizes that in a day he may be 
stricken by disease, accident or death, and leave his wife to 
struggle to pay off a mortgage. Much information can also be 
secured from the records at the offices of the Register of Deeds 
and the Register of Probate, which, if carefully examined, will 
disclose the names of many possible prospects. 

More Prospects. By J. J. Tyndall. 

Now, let us suppose that you have succeeded in writing your 
first application. When you get his signature, then also get from 
your man the names of three intimate friends, with their ad¬ 
dresses or occupations. It’s a good plan to have a printed or 
typewritten slip attached to the application, so that when your 
prospect has signed it and your sale is really made you can say 
to him, “Oh, I must get from you the names of three of your 

45 


SALES METHODS 


intimate friends for reference.” The average man at once infers 
that these names are for the purpose of identification in the case 
of death, and not one in a hundred will inquire anything further 
about it or hesitate about giving them. In any event, always get 
these names when you can, for thus you begin an endless chain, 
each name related to, or identified with, some man you have in¬ 
sured. Follow the plan of making a card for each of these men, 
and file to come up on the date the contract applied for is issued 
and ready for delivery. 

A Definite Plan to Find Prospects. By Walter Buckner. 

I have little sympathy with the salesman who starts out Mon¬ 
day morning, goes leisurely to his office, sits around, scratches 
his head, and wonders whom he can see during the day. 

On the other hand there is great sympathy for the man whose 
ambitions are hampered by the limit of time at his disposal, who 
wakes up earlier than usual on Monday morning, pulls from his 
pocket the list of people he is to see that week, and wonders if, 
during the first day, Monday, there will be hours enough for him 
to make all the calls he ought to make, wonders if he will be 
able on the other days to see those names he has been collecting 
for weeks and months. 

Every salesman, from the day he signs a contract to enter life 
insurance, should continue the gathering of prospects, and let no 
day pass on which he does not add materially to the list. He 
should adopt a definite plan. If he cannot originate one he 
should take one originated by someone else, and prepare his list. 

Every conversation should in some manner be directed to lead 
to a prospect. When he reads his paper his eye should be trained 
to light on something that will in some way give him an idea 
leading to a prospect. 

Canvassing for prospects a certain part of each day is just as 
important as sitting down and trying to close a man for life 
insurance. 

Friends, acquaintances and policyholders compose the most 
valuable source for gathering information that leads to prospects. 

Many a man to whom you can talk and who might not at the 
moment consider life insurance for himself will gladly discuss 
with you a number of prospects, or give you information leading 
in their direction. 


46 


FINDING PROSPECTS 


Drop in often on your acquaintances. They think little of it 
when they mention that some friend has inherited some money; 
a salary increase; married; a new baby; made money in the 
stock market; a sister or mother dependent on him; lost his wife 
and left with children; sold some real estate; made a big fee; 
been promoted; received some insurance money himself. 

Such leads are worth while. 

Every man with whom you have dealings, from whom you buy 
anything, from whom your family buys anything, from whom 
your friends buy, ought to be one who not only might be himself 
a prospect, but through his instrumentality other prospects could 
be learned of, and through them the names of still another group 
of prospects come to light. 

Prospect building should be like the chain letter, where every 
man who gets one is asked to write five friends and each of them 
five friends and so on. 

Street car conversations, table talk, even occasions unconnected 
with business will often divulge information of hte utmost value 
to discerning agents. Try to get hold of '‘house organs,” pacers 
issued to their employes by large manufacturing or industrial con¬ 
cerns ; in these you’ll find notices of the prosperity of emplovees 
that will make them worth vour while to see. 

There ought never to be a time, after a salesman has been in 
the business for as many as 30 days, when by the system that he 
has evolved he has not on his list many more persons than he 
has time to see. I verily believe that in every 30 days if a sales¬ 
man properly applies part of his time, say an hour a day, to 
listing prospects, he will get enough to keep him busy for from 
two to three times the number of days he put in gathering the 
names. 

It is purely a matter of daily thought, daily cultivation, assist¬ 
ed by plain, hard, systematic work, plus the careful keeping in an 
orderly and convenient manner the names and salient facts con¬ 
cerning those who must be seen. 

Not a Social Diversion. By J. W. Daniels. 

There is a distinctive difference between a prospective customer 
for life insurance and a prospective customer for perhaps any 
other commodity in the world. Money for all practical purposes 
can buy anything desired, except one thing and that one thing is 

47 


SALES METHODS 


life insurance. A prospect to get life insurance must not only- 
have money, but he must have health as well and a clean reputa¬ 
tion. So that given a man with money and health it may be said 
we have a prospect for life insurance. He may be your butcher, 
baker, grocer or he may be the office boy of the President of the 
United States—all these are your prospects for life insurance. 

Interviewing prospects for life insurance is a business, not a 
social or semi-social function, as many solicitors seem to believe. 
The universal rule laid down is to present your proposition when 
and where a prospect's mind and senses are undisturbed. Be¬ 
cause the contract is a complex one calling for the annual pay¬ 
ment of a fixed sum of money for a long period of years, the 
salient and emergency features are not easily grasped by the lay¬ 
man. Hence, to understand the proposition, it recpiires the whole 
and undivided attention of the prospect. 

Supply Always Good. By George T. Dexter. 

In your town the fall and winter will bring a goodly number 
of new babies. Their mothers will need increased protection, 
and their fathers will be unusually susceptible. Some will be 
able to take only small policies, and others will buy life income 
policies. Mothers and fathers alike will be interested in endow¬ 
ment instalment policies to assure a college education. Some¬ 
body will write this rich business,—why not you? 

Marriage is a perennial event. There will be a lot of them in 
your town in the next few months. You will be hearing of en¬ 
gagements, and the license records are available. A man is more 
approachable for insurance at the nearing of his wedding than 
he is three months afterwards. Somebody will scoop up these 
applications,—why not you? 

There will be numerous funeral ceremonies in your town be¬ 
fore spring. Watch, inquire, and while these relatives and friends 
still are subdued by the shock of death, and still are unnerved by 
the close-home illustration of life’s uncertainty and widows' 
needs, see them and insure them. Somebody will seize these 
many opportunities,—why not you? 

Many men and women will be buying property and giving 
mortgages, or, owning property, will mortgage it, in each of the 
coming months. They ought to have insurance coverage— would 
increase their interest rate only two or three per cent. Read the 

43 


FINDING PROSPECTS 


registers every day. Somebody goes after and gets this busi¬ 
ness,—why not you? 

Everywhere in your town are men whose early taken insurance 
is now insufficient. They are good prospects for an increase, in 
the form of life income. Their families are larger, their own in¬ 
comes are larger, they know the worth of life insurance,—no 
need to create a belief in its usefulness; and they realize the lia¬ 
bility of disablement and of accidental death. Somebody will 
adjust these life insurance holdings,—why not you? 

Th.e doctors, dentists, ministers, in your town are excellent 
prospects for the life income policy—as are professionals gen¬ 
erally. Usually they are not expert investors, and their assets— 
their skill and their patrons—vanish at their death. They ac¬ 
cumulate little money and leave little of other property. The life 
income policy just fits their case. Somebody will insure them,—• 
why not you? 

Your town is packed with opportunity. Some of it lies on 
the surface. Some of it must be dug up. The mob scrambles for 
the surface gold, ignoring the mine beneath. Dig and you shall 
find,—that’s what the successful are doing,—why not you? 

How We Recognize Buyers of Protection. By L. G. Saun¬ 
ders. 

How do we know the man who is a good buyer, of insurance? 
Many indications have been given, but here are a few that may be 
newsy: 

1. The best buyer is first of all a gentleman. 

2. He goes at the matter philosophically and logically. 

3. He wishes to have a thorough understanding of the details 
of his policy. 

4. He wants to know all about the company that you represent. 

5. He must have faith in the salesman and feel instinctively 
that in you as the salesman he is going to get real service. 

6. Above everything else do not forget that your selling 
methods are making buyers of the above-mentioned types. 

Systematic Planning of a Field Man’s Work. By E. B. 

Houghton. 

There is no question in my mind but that the systematic plan¬ 
ning of one’s work is essential to success in any line of work. 
4 49 


SALES METHODS 


There is no line of work where a definite system is more nec¬ 
essary than in the line of endeavor in which we find ourselves. 
The salesman who starts out to write business with no definite 
method of obtaining and following up prospects is greatly lessen¬ 
ing his chances for success. He cannot render real service to his 
clients or to the insuring public without some real system. 

The first thing a salesman must acquire is a definite system of 
working and Ly working I mean seeing people. You must see 
people in order to place insurance on their lives. Six interviews 
per day is usually the minimum number held by the successful 
beginning agent. The field man who sees and really has an in¬ 
terview with six people per day should write $200,000 of business 
per year. He should average two applications per week at an 
average of $2000 per application. This will give him an income 
of $3000 in first year’s commission or an average of $2.00 for 
each interview. As time goes on and the representative becomes 
more experienced w r e find that the average per interview grow r s 
higher and higher. Careful salesmen and companies who have 
made an exhaustive study of this subject prove that this system¬ 
atic plugging wins. All of us have periods when we feel that be¬ 
cause of good business last week w r e can “lay off” for a couple 
of days. This is the danger period and the time that we have 
really a mental battle to wage unless we are to overthrow the 
good work we have done. After a temporary “let down” it takes 
a long time to get things swinging smoothly again. Let us ac¬ 
quire first a definite plan of seeing people. 


50 


CHAPTER III 


THE APPROACH 

Up to the Mental Capacity of “Big” Men. By John J. Parker. 

Big men are big for three reasons: they have capacity, fixity 
of purpose, and driving power. An important element of their 
capacity is their ability to see more than their associates do. 
It is said that genius is only a superior power of seeing, and I 
believe it is true. To vision, or the power to see, must be added 
the ability to grasp large affairs, to work out details, and to 
utilize the brains of other men. Big men are used to thinking, 
talking, and acting on a large scale. Cecil Rhodes literally 
thought in continents. Jim Hill developed an empire in the 
Northwest. Schwab deals with fleets of ships and giant in¬ 
dustries. 

When you get your hearing with the big man don’t throw away 
your opportunity by talking in small terms. He thinks and talks 
in large figures, and you must adjust yourself to think and talk 
in the same way. It will make you dizzy, if you are not used 
to such heights, but you can learn. You will never be able to 
do business on a big scale until you have learned to think and 
expect on a big scale. 

One of the advantages of making friends among successful 
men is that you will gradually acquire the point of view and 
mode of thought of the group to which they belong, and of the 
groups a little higher up. This enables you to meet a man of 
any rank on his own plane of thought, and if you can impress 
a big man by your knowledge of affairs, especially of affairs 
in which he is an expert, it will be much easier to do business 
with him. A big man in business will not waste much time on 
a piker. 

From American Magazine; copyright. 

Tapping Personal Interest. By Oliver Thurman. 

Among the technical terms that have crept into selling talk 
are “creating interest,” “developing desire” and “getting action.” 

51 


SALES METHODS 


It is a fallacy that declares that the life insurance salesman 
must “create an interest” in his commodity. It is not the job 
of the life salesman, to create an interest in life insurance. His 
job is to tap an interest that already exists. It is his job tc 
discover what are the deeper interests of the prospect, and then 
hook life insurance up to serve those interests. 

If the prospect’s chief interest is discovered, this can be 
enlisted. 

The platitudinous statements made by life insurance salesmen 
in their purported effort to “arouse interest” quite naturally 
incite prospects to devising of excuses for evading discussion. 
Even if the prospect should be interested in life insurance, he 
can easily repel the salesman who asks him to take time to talk 
about insurance at that moment. He can say that “he always 
buys from a certain friend,” or that he “has a directors’ meeting 
to attend,” or that he has an engagement with his wife, or that 
he will talk about it next week. But a man usually has time 
to talk about his own personal interest, the one that he may 
want to display to the salesman, or may be willing to discuss 
with the salesman. 

The salesman who finds out before calling on the prospect, 
what this prospect’s interests are. can plan in advance the 
manner in which he will tap that interest, and enlist it to serve 
in the purchase of life insurance, for the benefit of that interest. 
The “development of desire” for insurance conies as the next 
step, after the salesman has got the prospect talking about the 
subject of his interest. The prospect develops the desire foi 
himself, through suggestions from the salesmen, to buy insur¬ 
ance for the sake of the subject of his interest. 

The mind usually expresses itself in comparison of values 
when desire exists. It is a question as to whether the thing 
desired at the moment is more earnestly to be sought than some¬ 
thing else. It is when desire has been developed that man} 
salesmen “lose themselves,” and kill their chances of sales. Wit! 
this instinct for comparisons when desire has awakened; tin 
prospect may wonder whether this salesman is the right one tc 
buy from, wdiether his organization is the best, whether hi; 
rates are best. And at this point in the interview, when tin 
prospect, because he wants insurance, begins to think in com 
parisons, the agent often flutters away in technical dissertation 

52 


THE APPROACH 


on the comparative value of companies, kinds of policies, and so 
forth. In this maze, the prime interest of the prospect, which 
it must be remembered is the thing to be served, is brushed 
aside. The agent should keep harking back to this prime interest 
—the wife, or the daughter, or whatever it is that has been the 
interest to be tapped. 

For Inheritance Taxes. By E. S. Brashears. 

To my mind, under this topic of inheritance taxes and in¬ 
surance, should come not only the question of taxes, but the 
whole question of administration expenses and shrinkage of 
securities in an estate, and the use of insurance to offset these 
items. All of these items should properly be included in any 
program of insurance which might be submitted to a man of 
more than average means and they cover the specific need of 
the estate. These obligations can appropriately be met only by 
life insurance. The first question which naturally occurs to 
your mind is? Who needs this protection? Who are the pros¬ 
pects for this class of insurance? Every city has a great many 
of them—business men in all lines, bankers, professional men, 
and some of those without any definite business who might be 
classed as capitalists. It is not, however, only the very wealthy 
who need this insurance. The smaller merchants, the doctors, 
lawyers, real estate brokers—any one who is rated as over 
$50,000 should be interested. May I suggest that those of you 
who have not looked over the Dun and Bradstreet ratings will 
be surprised when you do. There are many people in your city 
who are rated at vastly more than you might think. 

You will find that with this class of prospect it is easier to 
get an interview on a proposition to pay estate and inheritance 
taxes than it would be on the subject of life insurance for any 
other need. Even the man who has told you that he has all 
he is ever going to buy will frequently warm up to this subject. 
Let me warn the younger agent, however, that before attempting 
to work along this line you should be prepared to discuss the 
whole subject intelligently and that you should be fairly familiar 
with the working of both the inheritance and the income tax 
laws. Men of means are all keenly interested in matters of 
taxation and you are usually able to get their close attention 
when you stick to that subject. However, these men are of a 

53 


SALES METHODS 


most intelligent class and they soon lose interest if they find 
that you are not thoroughly posted on your subject. May I 
inject right here a caution against using your approach or inter¬ 
view in an attempt to foster ill feeling against taxes or the 
government that assesses them. Revenue for our government 
must be raised and the time will probably never come when 
large amounts of it will not be raised through income and in¬ 
heritance taxes, and as a matter of fact when understood the 
inheritance tax is probably the most sane of all taxation. It is 
not our province to discuss the injustice of tax, but rather is 
it our province to furnish an adequate means for its prompt 
payment. 

Now as to the need of this protection. What are the debts 
accruing at death? May I list them? 

1. The federal estate tax. 

2. The state inheritance tax, which applies in most states. 

3. Administration expenses. 

4 . Shrinkage of securities. 

Easier to Get Attention on the First Call. By Charles L. 

Sykes. 

The first step in the sale is to obtain an audience. This 
of course implies time, place and condition. These three features 
largely determine the success of the sale. A salesman should 
watch not only his physical but his mental appearance. The 
latter especially counts for much. The way a man walks into 
an office to inquire for his prospect shows whether he is full 
of enthusiasm and confidence. Many men come into an office 
apologetically and timidly. This first step should be approached 
with confidence. 

The next step in the sale is attention. There are two kinds 
of attention, favorable and unfavorable. People get knowledge 
through their senses. A life man is able to send his message 
to the brain of his prospect through the senses of sight and 
hearing. The impression made through the eye is 25 times as 
great as through the ear. Therefore when dealing with the 
average man the life man should not overlook the use of ma¬ 
terial to be conveyed through the sense of sight. Charts, pads, 
letters and so on can be shown and illustrations given that will 
influence the prospect. It is easier to get the attention of a 

54 


THE APPROACH 


prospect the first time you see him than thereafter. On the 
subsequent interviews the desire has to be recreated. Attention 
has to be secured again. A salesman to do this must go at 
his subject in a different way and charts can be used to advantage. 

Make Acceptance Easy and Sell With a Smile. By S. J. 

Rosenblatt. 

Sell life insurance with a smile. There is no use going to a 
man with a long face. Don’t talk about widows being left with 
children and having to take in washing and dark clouds and dire 
want and poverty and all of that sort of thing, but picture the 
bright side to the man. Tell him all of the fine splendid things 
that life insurance will do. Tell him that it is the instrument 
by means of which all of the cherished plans that he made in 
his boyhood can be carried to completion. Tell him that with 
the proper amount of life insurance, he can make certain all of 
the things that he has been dreaming about and hoping for. 
Tell him that if he dies, life insurance will act as the great 
strong arm to reach out from the grave and carry on. 

People are tired of being talked to and approached in the 
old stereotyped way. There is too much dullness about business 
anyway. Men like to be cheered up and be made to smile and 
laugh. They like to have a little novelty in the day’s work. I 
find that a good story, if it has some point to it, breaks the ice 
for me better than anything else. 

Make it as easy as possible. Avoid the use of figures and 
matter prepared in advance as much as possible. The thing 
should be made easy to understand. People generally do not 
like to take on new responsibilities. Most people shrink from 
responsibilities. If the life insurance salesman submits to a 
prospect three or four different life insurance propositions, all 
elaborately prepared, and thrusts upon the prospect the respon¬ 
sibility of choosing the correct one, he is driving the prospect 
away instead of attracting him. The thing to do is to simply 
decide what the man needs and then tell him that he needs it. 
If he wants figures, don’t give them to him. 

When a man asks me for figures and a lot of information 
about what I am trying to sell him, I always tell him that all 
that he wants to know about what I am trying to sell him is 
in the contract. I often say to such a man; “It doesn’t make 

55 


SALES METHODS 


any difference what I tell you, because what 1 tell you is not 
necessarily what you buy. What you buy is in the contract that 
you get, and the only way that you can find out what it is, is 
by reading it in the policy. So the thing for you to do is get 
examined, so that I can find out if you can get a contract. Ihen 
if you can get one, I will have the company fix one up for you 
and bring it around so that you can get a look at it and so that 
I can explain it to you. I do not write the policies—I simply sell 
them. When you get the policy, you can see what it is I am 
talking to you about.” 

Courage to Tackle Big Stuff. By Harry R. Wright. 

‘‘How can I write more business?” 

Just about a year ago I canvassed the situation very thoroughly. 
I felt that there was some method by which I could materially 
increase my sales, but the way to do this wasn’t very clear. 
I found that it would be just about impossible for me to increase 
the number of calls I was making and yet, how increase my 
sales without increasing the number of prospects I called on? 

The matter looked a great deal like an unsolvable problem. 
It seemed as though I had reached my ultimate limit in the 
writing of life insurance and yet I hated to admit, without a 
struggle, that I couldn’t do any better than I had been doing. 

The solution to the problem came to me in a rather unique 
manner. I was standing in a cigar store one noon, thinking 
about the question, when I overheard a couple of young men 
talking together. One of the men was always talking in big 
figures—hundreds of thousands and millions of dollars. 

“Say,” said the second chap. “Why don’t you be reasonable? 
Why don’t you cut out this million dollar stuff and get down 
to earth?” 

“Huh,” said the first man, “you forget that it’s just as easy 
to talk millions as it is hundreds. And it’s just as easy to go 
after big customers as it is the little ones. That’s why some 
salesmen make such a killing and why others are pikers!” 

Right in a flash I saw that here was the answer to my own 
question. It would be just as easy for me to call on big pros¬ 
pects as on small ones! It would be just as easy for me to 
make just as many calls as I had been making, but to call only 

56 



THE APPROACH 


on people who, if they bought any insurance at all, would be 
vastly bigger amounts than I had been selling. 

I soon discovered that this big vision in life insurance, as it 
might be called, registered most emphatically with my pros¬ 
pects. It made them look at me with respect when I suggested 
that they increase their line at once by $25,000 to $100,000. A 
proposition like that was always, in a way, flattering to a 
prospective customer, and assured the immediate securing of his 
interest. And I found, too, to my astonishment, that many 
prospects were thinking along the same lines of greatly increased 
lines of insurance themselves. 

All last year I pursued this policy of going after the big stuff. 
Of course, if I saw a good chance for selling a small contract 
I didn’t pass it up because it was small. Instead I went after it 
hard and, because of my own enlarged vision of what can be 
done with life insurance, I was frequently able to sell a larger 
contract to this small customer, than he had been contemplating 
purchasing. I found that where $2,000 policies had formerly 
looked big to me, they now appeared rather small. 

Get Under His Skin. By Harry R. Wright. 

We should never be discouraged if our prospect is gruff and 
uncivil. Sometimes these are the best kind of prospects because 
there are so many timid agents in the business who have avoided 
these gruff fellows that when the right salesman comes along 
and penetrates the armor he finds many times a man of great 
kindness, not nearly so gruff as he appeared to be on the surface. 
Characteristics in men differ, but get underneath the skin and 
you will find him a pretty decent kind of a fellow. If he is a 
pretty tough nut to crack, remember that if you are the man to 
go after him he is easier to get than one of these men who is 
ready to meet everyone with a smile and waste a lot of time 
—promise to think over every proposition put to him, yet he 
does not mean business. Give me the gruff fellow. He makes 
the best kind of a prospect. I say that for the benefit of the 
newer men in the business. 

A salesman should approach his prospect impressed with the 
importance of his mission and with the standing of the organiza¬ 
tion he represents. He never should measure the other fellow’s 
pocketbook by the size of his own. We have back of us the 

57 


SALES METHODS 


•assets and honor of a great institution; we have a great mis¬ 
sion to perform. It is our mission to show him our goods 
whether he buys or not, and we ought to go conscious of our 
importance and the institution we represent and never cringe or 
be apologetic. We are not asking or conferring favors upon the 
man we are calling on. We are there as a matter of business— 
some man can make that sale, some man can get his application, 
why not I ? Whether you get your man or not, get his respect. 
There is every reason in the world why he ought to insure, not 
one single reason why he should not. Get that mental attitude. 

One-Minute Interviews. By J. B. Duryea. 

Go through your list and pick out 20 names, selecting them 
in one locality for economy of time. 

Send a personal letter to these names announcing that you 
are going to call for a preliminary interview, worded something 
like this: 

“Dear Sir: 

“I intend to call on you in a few days for a one-minute inter¬ 
view to obtain data necessary to enable me to prepare a propo¬ 
sition to continue your salary to your family, or to put you on 
our monthly pay-rolls for life when you are ready to retire. 

“Very truly.” 

When I start to call on these people I live up to my letter— 
a one-minute interview—unless the prospect detains me. When 
I call I remove my hat but do not take a seat. I say: “I am 
Mr. Duryea. I wrote you in regard to a life annuity for your 
old age.” The prospect will grunt, or smile, or say “yes.” No 
-matter what he does or says I immediately follow up with some¬ 
thing like this: “I want to figure out something for you, and if 
it looks good, I will let you have it to consider. What is your 
birthday?” Of course I have his prospect card in my hand 
when I enter his office, and I write his birthday under his name. 
“What is your wife’s birthday?” “Do you have any children?” 
“Boys or girls?” “What are their ages?” Having written these 
things down, I say, “All right, I will see how it looks, and let 
you know; good-bye.” 

Now let’s see what we have accomplished in this one-minute 
interview. 

1. Our brevity has impressed the prospect with the fact that 

58 


THE APPROACH 


we are not going to bore him to death with long drawn out 
interviews. 

2. We have his birthday, and birthdays are said to be worth 
$1.50 each. 

3. We have his wife’s birthday, or age, the number, sex and 
ages of his children. 

4. We have seen him in his office and are thus able to judge 
him much better than as if we had met him elsewhere. 

My experience has been that I can get this information from 
an average of 16 out of 20 calls, if the parties are in. These 
20 one-minute interviews can be finished in one day with time 
to spare. Then the work for the real interview may be begun. 

Special Preparation for the Prospect. By F. E. Dudley. 

Life insurance salesmen who are conspicuous leaders in this 
great profession make no secret of the fact that systematic 
preparation in advance of the interview is one of the most 
important factors responsible for the success which they have 
attained. As a matter of fact, any salesman owes it to his 
prospect to be able to present a clean-cut, concise presentation 
of his proposition as adapted to his particular needs, before he 
asks for an interview. The axiom, “time is money,” is so 
universally understood that the conscientious life insurance 
salesman who is unprepared should hesitate before approach¬ 
ing a business or professional man with a request for the time 
necessary for a proper presentation of the merits of his com¬ 
pany’s service, yet the great majority of salesmen have no com¬ 
punction in calling upon perfect strangers and endeavoring to 
interest them in the subject by reciting a stereotyped “selling 
talk” upon the benefits of life insurance in general, but wholly 
without application to the individual requirements of that par¬ 
ticular prospect. 

As to the information required in properly preparing for an 
intelligent canvass, the fundamental details are: First, the 
prospect’s financial circumstances, his income, his debts, including 
any mortgages, notes or other obligations; the amount of life 
insurance carried and to whom payable; his physical condition, 
his family, his home life and moral standing in the community. 
Assuming that your prospect is a man of affairs in his locality, 
it may take several hours to gather all of this data, but it should 

59 


SALES METHODS 


not be a difficult task, for you will find that by approaching the 
prospect’s friends and explaining confidentially that your re¬ 
quest is based upon a desire to prepare a proposition covering 
life insurance protection that will most fully meet his particular 
needs, they will cheerfully co-operate with you—at least to the 
extent of furnishing you sufficient information to enable you to 
proceed intelligently. 

Possibly in the development of the details of your search for 
information the friend to whom you go may, by indirect sug¬ 
gestion and association of ideas, become interested in your pro¬ 
posed plan for himself. If you are keenly alive to such a pos¬ 
sibility you will be quick to follow up the advantage in such a 
tactful manner that decisive action on his part will be easy to 
influence, because the fact that you are not trying to sell him 
disarms him, leaving his mind fully receptive to the attractive 
and convincing proposition which he understands you are going 
to submit to his friend. Even though in the first interview his 
interest may not culminate in obtaining his application, if he 
believes in life insurance; if he is' without sufficient protection 
and is a good physical, moral and financial risk, by following 
up with subsequent calls, for the purpose of informing him of 
your progress in his friend’s case, an opportunity will naturally 
be presented to obtain a definite and satisfactory conclusion. 

Soliciting Farmers. By H. B. Francis. 

I find that after being among the farmers twenty years, the 
fast eight of which have been devoted to the life insurance busi¬ 
ness, no commodity offered to farmers is handled so carelessly 
or abused so much as life insurance. I attribute this to the fact 
that so many men who go into the country to sell life insurance 
to farmers are not familiar with the business and social plane 
in which the average farmer and stock man of today is moving. 
This being the case, the agent reckons without his host. 

Intellectually he has grown from the be-whiskered, unsophis¬ 
ticated “Ezra,” as depicted by Uncle Josh, to an educated giant 
of industry. His sons and daughters attend colleges and uni¬ 
versities, and with them he counsels on many leading issues. 
I have frequently been asked to come into the house and take 
the matter up so the son, daughter, or wife, who may be a college 
graduate, may be present. This may seem strange, but personally 

60 


THE APPROACH 


I know of many cases where farmers’ wives have an A. B. or an 
A. M. diploma. 

Let me emphasize seven fundamental principles or truths in 
the art of soliciting life insurance among the farmers that should 
have a fixed habitation in your mind: 

1. You are conferring favors—not soliciting them. 

2. You have the same right to present your proposition to a 
prospect that he has to decline it. 

3. Maintain the respect of your prospect, with or without his 
application. You can afford to lose his business, but not his 
confidence. 

4. Eliminate all appearance of your pecuniary interest in the 
transaction and predicate your suggestions, arguments and course 
of action upon the interest of your prospect. 

5. Never approach a prospect by asking him if he is busy. 
The question suggests to his mind that your proposition is not 
worth his attention unless he has nothing else to do, and that 
you are willing to wait. Never tell him that he must or ought 
to insure. He resents the “must,” and the fact of your approach¬ 
ing him on the subject of life insurance implies that you think 
he “ought” to do so. 

6. Present the cost of your contract in terms with which your 
prospect is familiar. For instance, instead of saying it requires 
an annual deposit of $100, say it requires only two acres of corn 
or three average-sized hogs. You will find that in making your 
comparison with his own products that he is psychologically 
interested. 

7. You cannot war successfully on ignorance and selfishness 
with a rate book alone. It must be enforced with a clear 
estimate of the value of life insurance. If you do not appreciate 
the benefits of life insurance, you cannot place them successfully 
before others.- You cannot impart faith that you do not possess. 
A deep conviction is contagious. The fire in your ^oirit should 
kindle the hearts of prospects to action. 

Getting Business Women Interested. By Katherine Newton. 

“Would you be interested in a bond which would guarantee 
you a permanent monthly income, regardless of fluctuations of 
business or the rise or fall of securities—one which you can 

61 


SALES METHODS 


buy on the partial payment plan without interest and at the 
same time assure your estate complete protection:” 

This question has only one answer if a woman is an intel¬ 
ligent thinker. She is interested. “Do you know that insurance 
can serve you in this way as no other can ?” She does not know 
it and we insurance salesmen must tell her. “Are you satisfied 
with your savings of the past five years?” Of course she is not, 
“You and I both know that we must save to have, do we not?” 

Then the problem is how can we accomplish the thing we 
know must be accomplished if we are to have a self-respecting 
independent old age. She may be a woman who thinks her 
investment abilities are exceptional but it is difficult for any of 
us to accumulate a sum sufficient to purchase a bond outright. 
We must pay interest on the unpaid balance of a bond or any 
other investment. In insurance bonds we have a constantly 
increasing asset and the face value is paid if death occurs before 
maturity of the bond (or contract). 

Women find insurance most appealing if the points applicable 
to their individual cases are presented and emphasized. Each 
case is a separate one; each woman’s needs are more or less 
different according to her age and responsibilities. In a recent 
interview the woman, a stranger to me, assured me that she had 
long since decided that insurance did not attract her, that she 
had been approached by many insurance salesmen and knew 
positively that it did not meet her needs. Asked if we women 
did not have common objectives in desiring to find some way 
to provide something to partially at least supplant our salaries 
or other incomes at an age when it would be necessary or 
desirable to retire, she promptly assented, whereupon she was 
asked if she knew that insurance provides lifetime incomes. She 
said she had no idea that insurance meant anything more than 
death benefits and possibly a sum after 20 or more years of 
deposits amounting to little or no more than saved. The result 
of this interview, which is a typical one, was an annual premium 
of $5,000 with optional settlement of a guaranteed monthly in¬ 
come for life. 

Do Not Carry Your Hat. By Alexander Cowen. 

When you call upon a man and he is at the head of the firm, it 
is poor policy to convey any information through a second or 

62 


THE APPROACH 


third party that will indicate directly or indirectly that you are a 
life insurance salesman. I believe it’s sufficient to say, “Tell Mr. 
So-and-So that Mr. Cowen wants to speak to him.” If the mes¬ 
sage should come back, “What do you want to see him about?” 
the reply is, “Just say Air. Cowen is here.” If the message should 
again come back, “What is the nature of your business?” the 
answer should be, “Just tell Air. So-and-So that I am here and 
would like to see him for a few minutes. Is he very busy?” If 
you should learn then that he is very busy on some important 
business matters, the best thing to do is to go back at some other 
time. 

If he is not busy, and you are conducted to his office, do not 
remove your hat immediately. Enter with your shoulders square 
and your head thrown back. Don't go in with your hat in your 
hand and your heart in your mouth. You cannot control a man 
unless you can make him respect you. He cannot respect you if 
you walk in with an attitude which leads him to believe that you 
are coming to solicit for some charitable organization. 

Be courageous. Brace yourself up every once in a while, and 
ask yourself a few questions. Who is this man whom I fear to 
interview? Is he made of more than ordinary common clay? 
Does his wealth make him any more than a human being? Does 
he know half as much about my business as I do? Why should 
I fear to enter upon a talk with this man on a subject that I 
know more about than he does, and about which I can give him 
lots of good information. 

Getting In. By Thomas H. Beck. 

In canvassing from house to house I always used a soft hat 
which I could hold under my arm, leaving both hands free. I 
would hand the housewife the product to hold because it made it 
easy to hold her attention, there was no place to put the package 
—halls do not have shelves you know— and I could usually hold 
her there just as long as I wanted to, because to dismiss me 
necessitated throwing the goods away. 

I learned also never to ask a woman to sign her name, because 
husbands have warned them never to sign anything. When I 
took my contract blanks out I would say, “Have you a card about 
you?’ She would of course say, “No.” Women never carry cards 

63 


SALES METHODS 


about them when they are at home. I would then say, ‘*lhat 
is all right, just give me your name and address here. 

I also found that I could trade on people’s curiosity. When I 
went to a home where I knew the name, I asked for Mr. Smith, 
when I really wanted to see Mrs. Smith. I would state my name 
and also give a local address. When Mrs. Smith came to the 
door she would say, “Mr. Smith is at his office—but I am Mrs. 
Smith.” I would hesitate and then say that I had wished to talk 
to her husband, but perhaps she would do. Then would follow, 
“Won’t you come in?” 

If you stand close to a screen door that opens outward, the 
party in the house cannot open it. If you went on a social errand 
you would step back and expect to be invited in, so I always 
stepped back and the door usually followed me. If the door 
swung in, I made a step forward as if to go in. 

I always made a practice of carrying with me everything I can 
when making a call—overcoat or raincoat, umbrella, portfolio, 
etc. When I get in I scatter my belongings in different places, 
overcoat on one chair, hat on another, put the umbrella some- 
where else, so that it will be exceedingly difficult for me to get 
out in a hurry. I make myself very much at home. 

Another thing, and this may help you, gentlemen—I wish you 
would try it some time. I find the most people make appoint¬ 
ments at 10 and 10:30. I therefore make mine at 10.10, 10.20, 
10:40 and 10:50, so as to avoid conflicting with other callers. 

I never ’phone if I can avoid it. There is too much telephone 
bravery; it is too easy for the man to say “No” over a telephone. 
If you are looking him in the eye, it is not quite so easy to say 
“No.” 

See the right man, the buyer of the institution; or, if in doubt, 
the real head, and work down from him. Beware of buyers ■who 
use only the rubber end of their pencils—who can always rub out, 
but never write. 

I once went to see a Standard Oil official. I glared at the of¬ 
fice boy and said very firmly, “Take this card to Mr. Bedford.” 
He took it and came out with the stock question, “What is the 
nature of your business?” I had a stock reply ready for him, 
“A courtesy call”—I always try to be courteous. They let me 
in. They, also, wanted to be courteous. 

64 



THE APPROACH 


First Impression. By Walt Leonard. 

Haven't you often met people for the first time and then formed 
your opinion of them? Sure you have. You have chalked them 
down on your blackboard as either being congenial and likeable 
or conceited and stiff. 

While you have a liking for some upon your first acquaintance 
it is because they are characterized with that congeniality which 
is so illuminating and catching that even the biggest grouch in 
the world could not help but become sociable with them. 

The first impression you make upon meeting strangers either 
in a business or social way has an important effect upon your 
success. 

If you approach a prospect in a half-hearted manner you give 
him the impression that you are ambitious or enthusiastic about 
3 r our work and he figures therefore that whatever you do tell 
him about your contracts is not liable to be explained correctly. 

But if a congenial salesman comes down the street a few min¬ 
utes after and approaches the same prospect he will maybe land 
him because his optimistic manner will give the prospect the idea 
that he is talking with one who is successful in his line and 
understands the proposition he has to offer. 

It is wise to use discretion in making your first impression 100 
per cent good. 

For instance—when you call upon Mr. Smith at his home don’t 
go to the door with a big stogie sticking out of your mouth 
thinking you’re making a hit—because Mrs Smith may detest a 
smoker and influence her husband to take out his insurance with 
the salesman down the street who displays better manners. 

There are lots of little things a salesman might do that will 
lose business which appear to be trivial in his mind but offensive 
to the prospect. 

You know people often judge a city as they see it while pas¬ 
sing through on a train without taking into consideration that 
they are seeing the dirtiest part of it. It isn’t doing the city 
justice but it’s human nature to judge upon the first impression 
made. 

Human nature is very peculiar and people most always judge 
too quickly—they do not enter into personalities and try to dis¬ 
cover the real beauty and character. 

While watching a couple of fellows playing pool the other 
5 65 


SALES METHODS 


evening I noticed that the first player ran off three balls, and then 
missed an easy shot and the next man ran the rest of the balls 
when his turn came. It reminded me of human nature from the 
fact that because the first player made a poor showing in the be¬ 
ginning he didn’t get another chance to win out. 

You make a poor impression at first and you’re apt to lose out 
because your prospect might run aw r ay with the idea that you ' 
are not interested enough in your work to know what you are 
talking about. Make your prospects chalk you down as a live 
wire. 

My Methods of Approach. By C. H. Hamilton. 

Great versatility is sometimes required in the approach. Your 
tact, your judgment of human nature, your general sense of the 
fitness of things, and your ability to adapt yourself to environ¬ 
ment and circumstances all play an important part. 

Confidence must be instilled at the outset, in the beginning of 
the negotiations, because “Confidence is the basis of trade.” You 
must be frank and sincere in your approach, having a real de¬ 
sire to serve your prospect. Your personality should inspire con¬ 
fidence—confidence in you yourself, your company, and your 
proposition. 

You should never approach your prospect unless you have the 
following: 

Courage and a smile. 

Faith in yourself and your mission. 

Enthusiasm, which is “faith on fire.” 

Poise. 

Clarity of thought. 

Determination to serve by selling. 

The object of the approach is to secure favorable attention, 
that mental attitude where you can “talk business” with your 
prospect. 

Frequently, the best general methods of approach are two: 

First, asking short pertinent questions to arouse curiosity, the 
twin brother of interest. 

Second, making brief, striking statements to get the prospect 
thinking, and to create interest, probably to asking questions. 

These questions have been used to advantage: 

“Mr. Blank, you are the head of your family. Has it 

66 


ever 



THE APPROACH 


occurred to you that if yon should die, there would in reality be 
three deaths: 

First, the death of the husband, 

Second, the death of the father, 

Third, the death of the income?” 

“Would you like to know the best way to immediately create 
the best estate a man can leave behind?” 

“Would you like to know how to capitalize yourself in advance 
of your death and place to your credit a silent cash partner who 
will step right in and pay all your just debts?” 

(To the man with a mortgaged home.) “You are in debt— 
paying for your home. If you should die before your home is 
paid for, which would satisfy the mortgage, your home or a life 
insurance policy?” 

“Your life is more valuable than your property. Which of 
these have you fully covered with insurance?” 

“If your wife should survive you, which would she prefer as 
an inheritance, a farm, a town house or a guaranteed monthly 
income?” 

“I*ve come to show you how you can create, establish and pay 
for a large spot cash estate—pay for it on the installment plan, 
and at the same time become the executor and administrator of 
this estate, all without cost of court administration.” 

“What monetary value do you place upon your life?” / 

“Do you realize that if your earnings are $100 per month you 
are worth $24,000 in gold, at five per cent, interest, to your fam¬ 
ily? What provision have you made to continue this income to 
your family after your death?” 

Can you answer “yes” to these five questions?: 

(1) “Have you made your will?” (2) “Is it drawn according 
to law?” (3) “Does it protect the ones you want it to protect?” 
(4) “Will your executor be able to carry out your wishes?” (5) 
“Have you appointed an executor that will not die?” 

“Would you place $15,000 spot cash in your wife’s hands and 
tell her to go cut and invest it without your advice? Yet, that 
is precisely what you are planning to do with your lump sum 
life insurance policies.” 

Some of the following statements of facts may assist in your 
approach; 


67 


SALES METHODS 


‘'Mr. Blank, I’ve come to sell you a spot cash estate on the 
installment plan/’ 

“I am a promoter of estates. I have called to help you solve 
one of your most important problems—the financial future of 
yourself and your family.” 

Mr. Blank, I represent one of the largest financial institutions 
in the United States, and my business is selling money for fu¬ 
ture delivery. Our system of finance is unique. Let me tell you 
about it.” 

“Mr. Blank, you probably think that you are carrying sufficient 
insurance. Possibly it was sufficient when you took it out, but 
the cost of living has advanced about fifty per cent, in the past 
few years. So the changed conditions make you underinsured. 
Let me submit a proposition to make up the difference.” 

Impaired Hearing an Asset. By a Writer in the Manhattan 
Life. 

Life insurance salesmen—many of them—hear the word “no” 
too easily. But, it is no secret that some very successful life in¬ 
surance agents are men with impaired hearing who fail to heed 
the prospect’s first negative answer and continue their selling talk 
until the application is secured. 

A general agent once said that if it wasn’t for the fact that 
deaf mutes generally can neither talk nor hear, he would like to 
have all deaf agents. Some agents don’t even wait for the lips 
of the prospect to frame the word “no.” They immediately jump 
to the conclusion that the man they are trying to sell is not in¬ 
terested and make an apology for presenting the matter. 

It may be something on this style, “I suppose you don’t need 
any more life insurance, Mr. Blank?” or, “If you take out addi¬ 
tional policies would you take it out in our company, Mr. Jones?” 
or, a similar example of lack of tact, “Don’t you consider the 
company I represent, Mr. Brown, the best in the business?” or, 
another equally unsalesmanlike phrase, “Do you think I could in¬ 
terest you in any life insurance?” The answer to queries put in 
this way is inevitably “no” and has been ever since the beginning 
of the world. Don’t ask a person if they need life insurance, but 
tell them why they need it. 


68 


THE APPROACH 


Rely on Courtesy, Curiosity or Self-Interest. By J. W. 

Daniels. 

When you approach prospects, with whom you are not ac¬ 
quainted, the following formula of introduction:—Mr. Jones, 
Mr. Brown is my name. I have a proposition I wish to show 
you, I will detain you but a moment. The two points to keep in 
view are not to intimate the nature of your business in your in¬ 
troduction or fail to suggest that you will not w r orry or bore him, 
as you wish to keep in the path of least resistance. If you indi¬ 
cate your business by stating in your introduction that you repre¬ 
sent such and such a life insurance company, or fail to suggest 
that you will detain him but a moment, you are liable to strike a 
discordant note. His prejudice may be strong against life in¬ 
surance, or he may have been bored by an agent, that preceded 
you. The formula suggested discloses your mission but not your 
business, and it carries with it the assurance that you will not 
worry or unduly detain him. It quiets his fears and disarms 
him. You can rely, as a rule, on his courtesy, curiosity or self-in¬ 
terest to be a sufficient motive for inviting you in or sitting down 
and listening to your proposition. The exception to this rule 
when you introduce yourself will ask, what is your proposition? 
Tell him firmly that you wish to show him a proposition from 
such and such a life insurance company. Tell him you will im¬ 
pose no obligations upon him, if he will do you the courtesy to 
listen a moment to your proposition. Nine out of ten will then 
do so. The cause of this prospect’s hostile attitude is a defective 
understanding. These defects are not permanent, if he is sane, 
they are easily removed, they may be the result of hear-say, or a 
false idea of your contract, or company. It has no foundation 
for existence and fact—his ideas control him. 

After a Meal. By J. W. Daniels. 

The occupation of a prospect will generally indicate the best 
probable time and place to approach him. If, however, the time 
and place fail to conform with the rule, postpone the appointment 
or interview, because your proposition will have more force dur¬ 
ing the first interview, if held under favorable circumstances. 
You will find, as a rule, the home to be the best place to inter¬ 
view the majority of the industrial class of prospects. It will 
place you in close touch with a prospect’s wife, mother or father, 

69 


SALES METHODS 


who arc often the final determining factor in his course of action. 
Interviews are frequently multiplied by presenting a proposition 
at a time or place where he has to postpone his decision to talk 
it ever with his wife, mother or father. The best time for home 
interviews is immediately after breakfast, dinner or supper. 
Never approach a prospect before his meal time, if you can avoid 
it, because at that time, his wife, or mother is usually engaged. 
It frequently happens that he will give you his application on a 
satisfied appetite, where he would not listen to your proposition 
on an empty stomach. Classify your home interviews—segregate 
the prospects, who work days to interview nights, those, that 
work nights to mornings and afternoons, arrange your list so 
your prospects will be close to each other as you can. 

The Interesting Opening. By A. D. Anderson. 

I fully believe that the fate of many sales is virtually decided 
within the first two minutes of the spoken interview. To a large 
number of men the subject of life insurance is very much hack¬ 
neyed and perhaps distasteful. And so these men a time-worn 
statement to the effect that “You have a life insurance proposi¬ 
tion that you wish to discuss with them” does not arouse any 
particular desire on their part to continue the interview, and 
they will probably confide in you that you are wasting your time. 
Of course, you could probably show him where you were doing 
no such thing, and prove it, too, but as a man does not usually 
care to have a stranger come in and beat him in an argument 
against his will, why not say something that will be pleasing to 
him at the outset and probably arouse his interest? For instance, 
if you ask a man if he would like to know that his wife would 
get $100 a month for the rest of her lifetime the idea would most 
likely be pleasing to him and he would probably answer “yes.” 
In this way you are more likely to arouse his curiosity and the 
logical thing is for him to want to know more about it. 

Plan Your Interviews. By E. B. Houghton. 

Now that we have decided to see people we must have some¬ 
thing definite to say to them. Plan your interviews before you 
approach your prospects. So much depends on your preparation 
that you cannot be too careful in studying your prospect and his 

7d 


THE APPROACH 


needs. As a rule a definite sales talk varied to fit the prospect be¬ 
ing canvassed is the thing a field man can rely upon to get busi¬ 
ness. Map your proposition before him on paper—he will get it 
quicker and you will be able to bring your interview to a success¬ 
ful close much sooner than if you try only to talk him into doing 
it. Many salesmen talk themselves out of business. 

What Does the Prospect Think? By J. Fred Lawton. 

The sensible “superman” buys life insurance without argument, 
just as he would buy any other necessity. The fellow whose 
neighbor died “a total loss” also buys “over the counter.” How¬ 
ever, as these are abnormal cases, I will confine myself to show¬ 
ing what the average prospect thinks when you approach him— 
why he thinks it—and what our selling attitude should be in the 
face of his thoughts. 

What the average prospect thinks when you approach him de¬ 
pends largely upon how r you look to him and how well he thinks 
you know your business, but in general we can sum up his 
thoughts about as follows: “How can I dismiss this man with¬ 
out hearing his proposition? He is selling something I don’t 
understand and everything he will talk about happens after I’m 
dead. He will probably talk over my head about his own com¬ 
pany and not about life insurance. I know he’s right, but I don’t 
like to admit it and anyway I’m busy and haven’t got time to 
argue with him. It looks as though I’m in for a dull time but 
I’ll give him a few minutes. I can probably get rid of him by 
jolting him saying he is a good salesman, or if I tell him I’ll be 
ready in six month he will probably forget about it. Better still, 
I’ll get him to give me a sample policy and a written proposition. 
Then I can take my time looking them over, and finally tell him 
my wife objects to my buying insurance.” 

The above thoughts of the prospect all sum themselves up in¬ 
to the one paramount thought uffiich is “I’m not interested.” In 
Detroit we face this fact as it is and base our premise on the 
idea that the prospect is not interested. If he is interested some¬ 
thing is wrong—if not, we have a perfectly normal case to work 
upon. 

Let us look at it briefly from the prospect’s point of view. A 
man calls at your office to sell you some neckties. Fie puts his 
head through your door and says, “Do you want to buy any neck- 

71 


SALES METHODS 


ties?” Now, what do you think when he approaches you? You 
are not interested in neckties. You are busy with your work and 
haven’t seen any of his neckties which he carries in a suit case. 
In fact, you don’t want to see any. You tell him quickly that you 
are not interested. But suppose the same man comes in to see 
you with several neckties of different colors hanging over his 
arm. He holds them up to the light to let you see the different 
shades. Your wife likes blue; your sister likes green. You feel 
the material. The price is reasonable. You are interested. You 
buy and thank him for coming in. Your thoughts when he leaves 
you are different from those you entertained when he approached 
you. 

What do you think when a book agent approaches you? He 
is selling James Whitcomb Riley's poems. Not interested because 
you have books on your shelves at home unread. He smiles, tells 
you of Riley’s home life; relates anecdotes about “dear old Jim,” 
recites “When, the frost is on the pumpkin” brings tears to your 
eyes and—“good night,” your name is on the order blank! What 
you originally thought when he approached you didn't count with 
the book agent. 

Life insurance is to the uninformed prospect like a black abyss, 
full of duties, obligations, death and money paid out. To cross 
this pit, lie must answer personal questions, go to. the doctor’s 
office to be stripped and pounded and listened to, and then sign 
his name to “everything.” All he sees is this dark chasm, the 
crossing of which he feels can be put off until tomorrow. If 
we can bridge this gap for him he will buy insurance and be our 
friend for life, but we must talk about those nearest to his heart 
—income for his wife and education for his children. He must 
be shown how easily it can be handled to suit his convenience. 
Once we get him over the mysterious bridge he is so glad to 
have the protection that he looks back and wonders why he put 
off buying so long. Instead of going to see a man about life in¬ 
surance we must go to see him about his little boy Stanley or 
his little girl Pauline. Then just watch him pull down the “Not 
interested” sign and substitute “Welcome.” 

The Change of Age Plan. By Philip Burnet. 

The scheme: To secure the birthdays of a large number of 
persons and interview them just prior to their change of age. 

72 


THE APPROACH 


It works for a number of reasons, among them being these: 

1. This is the twenty-second day of September. If I should 
call on a man today and should discover in the course of my talk 
with him that his birthday occurred just six months ago today, 
the twenty-second of March, I should feel at once that I had a 
good chance to close him, because I would realize that I had one 
of the strongest closing argum^ntc the change of age. Now if 
it is true that the age change is one of the strongest closing argu¬ 
ments, why should we not so arrange our work that in the main 
we call on people only at this most favorable time? 

2. The change of age furnishes an immediate point of contact. 
It isn't necessary to spar for an opening. We go to a man with 
a thing that concerns him particularly and which today offers him 
an opportunity that he will never have again. 

3. If the solicitor has enough age changes to keep him busy, he 
is never at a loss where to go. Of course, he may sandwich in 
other calls, using his own judgment and ingenuity in supplement 
ing his age change calls with calls made when men are married, 
when they have a raise of salary, when a new baby is born, or 
when anything happens that makes a man a good prospect for 
insurance. On the other hand, when no such prospects are avail¬ 
able, the solicitor always has his age changes to fall back upon, 
and no time is wasted wondering where to go or what to do. 
Moreover, since the age changes can be arranged in route order, 
the minimum of time is lost getting from one to another. 

4. Since the age changes every month are distributed all over 
the territory, the solicitor makes one regular trip every month 
over his entire field, something after the way in which an indus¬ 
trial agent covers his debit every week. This monthly trip over 
the field keeps him constantly in touch with every part of his 
territory and puts him in contact with many prospects he would 
not otherwise reach. 

5. Finally, through the use of the age change plan, the solicitor 
either sees or passes through his mind, at least once every year, 
practically every insurable prospect in his field. And he is likely 
to get a larger volume of business out of the same list the fifth 
year of his following than the first time he goes through it. Of 
course, the list gradually grows small as some people get too old, 
others die, others move out of the territory, and so on, but this 
decrease is more than offset by new prospects coming on from the 

73 


SALES METHODS 


younger generation, by new people moving into the field, etc.; the 
solicitor discovers these new prospects and adds them to his list 
at the same time he is following up his age changes. 

Establishing the “You” Attitude. By E. Colwell, Jr. 

Many a successful life man who specializes in selling protec¬ 
tion, and sticks to his text, has standarized on the following as 
his Sales-Assisting Approach. Says he: 

“Mr. Blank, for the rest of your life there are only five princi¬ 
pal misfortunes likely to happen to you, 

First,— Premature death; 

Second,— D isa b ili ty ; 

Third,— Penurious Old Age; 

Fou rth,— Sup era nnuat i o n ; 

Fifth,— Unemployments, that is 

In premature Death, you may die at the wrong time; 

In Disability, you may lose your earning power; 

In Penurious Old Age, you may become old with no money, and 
have to work for it; 

In Superannuation, you may become so worn uot, that you can¬ 
not work for money in your old age; 

In Unemployment, you may be one of many thousands of the 
best people who may be thrown out of a job.” 

When canvassing his “business men” prospects, he uses the first 
four items, and when canvassing a “salaried-man,” he employs 
also the last item. 

That’s a Successful Insurance Approach because: 

It eliminates “self” and thereby avoids the “I” attitude; and 

It establishes the “you” attitude, and thereby endeavors to 
"“serve” instead of “sell;” and 

It arouses curiosity, thereby impelling attention; and 

It links into one or more of those five requirements, thereby 
intensifying curiosity, which merges into interest. 

Openers. By a writer in the Insurance Salesman. 

The following are all good approaches and will in most cases 
cause interest that will result in an interview. If you will con¬ 
tinue the study of this series you will find the answers and argu¬ 
ments that will enable you to continue the interview should your 
prospect object. Then turn to this list again and see if you can 

74 


THE APPROACH 


recall the arguments you could use should your prospect give 
you an excuse for not buying. 

Remember to look pleasant when seeking interviews. 

If a friend of yours were to call to have a talk with you about 
your welfare or the welfare of your business or your family you 
would listen to him, would you not? The prospect will usually 
answer in the affirmative. ‘Will you imagine me a friend here 
for that purpose for what I have to say is along that line?’” 

"I have a special proposition to offer you.” 

“Can I have ten minutes of your time that will be of advan¬ 
tage to you?” 

“You are interested in saving something for the rainy day or 
old age. May I talk to you about it for ten minutes?” 

“Have you ever figured what you will have to save every week 
to meet the requirements of your old age and to be out of the 
dependent class?” 

“Have you your income insured.?” 

“How would you get along if you were to be sick for a year 
and unable to attend to your usual work?” 

“Would you become financially embarrassed should you become 
permanently disabled?” 

“Let me talk to you about insuring your credit (or extending 
your credit).” y 

“I do not know a thing about your business, Mr. B., but is is 
my duty to make you acquainted with my goods so that if you 
should need my services you will know where to get such service 
and unless I show you what I have you may in the future suffer 
because of not knowing. My business is to safeguard your cred¬ 
itors if you have not already done as much along that line as 
you would like to do.” 

“Have you a guaranteed fund for your wife’s old age?” 

“You and I are in the same boat; trying to eke out something 
to keep our families together in comfort. Have you ever thought 
of the time when we might suddenly leave them for a very long¬ 
time and whether or not it would be possible for THEM to re¬ 
main together?” 

“How would you like to get a free insurance policy?” (Talk 
Endowment.) 

“We will pay you for carrying your insurance in our company.” 
(Talk Endowment or say something about dividends.) 

75 


SALES METHODS 


"Is your income guaranteed?” 

"Would like to make sure that you will have $10,000 to square 
up your debts at your death or at any other stated time?” (Talk 
Endowment or figure a cash loan or surrender if interested in 
securing an amount at a certain time.) 

"Did you ever think that your wife in her old age may need 
financial help?” 

What to Do With Answers to Circular Letters, By T. J. 

Durgin. 

The service lead is not an invitation to call and write a man 
for insurance, but rather it indicates that he is interested in the 
plan outlined in our letter. It is then our business to fan that 
spark of interest and create through salesmanship a desire for 
our proposition. Visualize each lead as a person of a certain age 
and occupation with a problem for which you have the answer. 
He is waiting for you to show him the solution. I have called 
on any number of men who have filed the lead letter in their 
"Unfinished Business” folder and when I called they immediately 
referred to it. I think that some of us have found on calling on 
our prospects, that, after having waited a reasonable length of 
time, he met one of our competitors and bought life insurance 
from him because it had been brought forcibly to his attention 
by the letter. Another thing to bear in mind is the fact that our 
letter is received in some instances by a man who is considering a 
plan submitted by some one else and who has deferred action un¬ 
til he hears from us. Is not this reason enough for promptness 
on our part? 

Now, just a few thoughts along the line of the positive busi¬ 
ness value of each letter sent out. First, we will consider those 
which are answered by the return of the card. You might inter¬ 
view a man and find that he is too old. I rather like to get leads 
on a few old ages because your reception is generally pleasant. 
The older man knows the value of life insurance and especially 
the income plan. Often he will give you the names of younger 
men and permission to use his name. This is a wonderful point 
of contact. I recently had a service lead on a man 69 years old. 
After a pleasant interview he referred me to his secretary. T 
wrote the secretary and two of his friends. I would never have 

76 



THE APPROACH 


written that business if I had considered the age an excuse for 
delay or non-delivery. 

Then there is the man who says “my wife must have written 
that card.” An excellent reason why he should consider the 
plan. If his wife is concerned in his comfort in old age, he should 
be concerned in her welfare should he be taken from her, and our 
plan takes care of either event. Pardon a personal reference 
again, but I once had a lead on a man who made this reply and 
wrote him and nine other acquaintances for a total of $33,000. 
Recently a lead enabled our Springfield representative and myself 
to get before the son of the president of a large Eastern life in¬ 
surance company, and we wrote him on the income plan for $10,- 
000 . 

Second. Every man who has received the letter has been so¬ 
licited in an especially effective way on the subject of our ‘‘In¬ 
come for Life” plan. Is there any reason why it would not be 
good business to call on those men who do not answer? I, per¬ 
sonally, know that calls of this kind bring results. Plan to call 
on a few men who do not answer. The diversion will be good 
for you, you will never lack calls, and, from my own experience, 
I assure you that your volume of business will increase. 

After all, the lead service is not a means of writing business 
for us but a very efficient method of helping us get the subject 
of life insurance before men. The letter is an introduction to the 
company, the lead itself a personal introduction in addition, mak¬ 
ing the way easier for the salesman when he calls. I firmly be¬ 
lieve that if we consider a man worth circularizing we should 
consider him worth a personal call. 

The lead service is valuable for the following reasons: 

First. It saves us time and money. 

Second. It gets us prospects. 

Third. It secures for us a point of contact with a man’s friends 
or acquaintances whom we would meet in no other way. 

To realize the value of the lead service we must: 

First. Visualize the man, not the mere lead. 

Second. Be prompt in calling on the man. 

Third. Consider your names and submit only those upon whom 
you will be willing to call should they not reply. 

77 


SALES METHODS 


Effective Come-Back. By L. L. Brennan. 

When I go into a man’s office and am told “Yes, your argu¬ 
ments are good, but I have a friend who is in the life insurance 
business, and if I insure I should buy my policy from him,” I 
come back: 

“Has he ever approached you on the subject of insurance?” 

“Well, no.” 

“Then, if you’ll pardon my frankness, he is no friend of yours,, 
or he would have seen to it that you were adequately protected.” 

Lists of Claims Paid. By H. W. Carey. 

It would be a difficult, if not impossible proposition to so ad¬ 
just all life and accident claims so that everybody would be satis¬ 
fied and thus create new business. The best plan I know of for 
creating new business and claim adjustments on the monthly pay¬ 
ment plan is the scheme used by one of our agents. He had a 
window shade narrowed up to suit his overcoat pocket, and he 
had printed on one side in big letters, “Paid to policyholders since 
organization $68,592,367.22” and on the other side he had a print¬ 
ed list of all the claims the company had paid in his city for the 
last ten years. When the psychological moment came he would 
roll out about ten yards of that list and begin apologizing because 
he didn’t have the other sixty million names on it. Naturally 
the thing looked interesting, and after he got the applications he 
always shook hands cordially with the applicant before leaving, 
and expressed the fervent hope that the new customer would be 
lucky enough to be hurt before it was time to make out his new 
list. 

Super Cold Canvass. By J. Edward Scherwin. 

I have found that to keep busy all day long, I could not depend 
on introductions alone. So when I call at a man’s office and find 
that he is absent. I go downstairs to the bulletin board of the 
tenants of the building, copy the names of individuals on three 
or four floors and proceed with the so-called “cold-canvass.” 
But observe, I know at least the name of each man I am calling 
upon and I also know he is of sufficient importance to get his 
name on the bulletin board of the building. 

Now, I know that my sale is going to be absolutely and con¬ 
clusively decided by the way I approach that man. And I am 

78 


THE APPROACH 


going to see him, despite secretaries or other obstacles, provided 
he is not engaged in a conference which entails more than five 
minutes waiting on my part. If it happens that I do wait two or 
three minutes, I pace up and down, slowly. I never sit down to 
wait for my man. A salesman must be on the alert always, and it 
is difficult to get under waj r from a sitting start. 

My prospect sends out word to show me in. I remove my hat 
in a distinctively peculiar motion I have carefully cultivated. 
That alone marks me as different from anybody else, and makes 
its subconscious impression on the mind of my prospect. Every 
move is calculated with regard to its most probable effect. My 
mind is right, and firm with determination. I respect myself and 
my profession. 

I go into my prospect’s office with the feeling that every dollar 
of the countless millions of dollars of my company is in my 
pocket. So, no matter how big or important my prospect is, he 
is no bigger than I am, because I have all those millions behind 
me. I extend my hand. He invariably accepts it. I smile. Not 
a grin and not a smirk. I smile because I know that a ten-cent 
smile is better than a ten-dollar frown. I say to him, “Mr. Jones, 
I am Mr. Schwerin.” I purposely use that phraseology in pref¬ 
erence to saying “My name is Schwerin.” I am entitled to the 
prefix of Mister, and these little things count. I proceed to tell 
him why I have called on him. I speak slowly, distinctly, in well 
modulated tones, and my opening is invariably the same. It is a 
habit talk, a memorized talk. Every word means something. It 
has been most carefully thought out. 

While I am delivering my opening speech, my mind is free to 
receive impressions. I watch my prospect, calmly, attentively. 
At the same time I am cataloging my surroundings, so that I 
can gain some knowledge of my auditor, from his personal ap¬ 
pearance, the appearance of his room, the ornaments on his desk, 
the pictures on the wall. This is necessary, because I know I 
must quickly establish a point of contact with my prospective 
buyer. Men buy only because some emotion—fear, greed, af¬ 
fection, envy, the acquisitive instinct—some emotion has been 
appealed to successfully. 

My opening calls for about fifty words. Then I stop, because 
my prospect must speak to me. He must say something. My 

79 


SALES METHODS 


words and my approach have disclosed to him that I am cour¬ 
teous, considerate and entitled to a gentlemanly response. From 
the nature of his response 1 get my cue as to how to continue 
the narrative. 1 never dispute. I never argue. I am patient and 
dignified but not a bit “up-stage.” I am not a bit servile either. 
I take the reins of the interview in my hands by asking him ques¬ 
tions which he must answer the way I wish him to, because no 
other answer is left open for him. His mind must work along 
the same line as mine, otherwise I cannot ever hope to sell him. 
My talk is never about myself. I do not brag. I listen appre¬ 
ciatively to whatever he has to say to me. My own enthusiasm 
is quiet but boundless. I am just bursting with enthusiastic be¬ 
lief that I have something for him which no one else has, which 
he needs, which he must have immediately, which he should buy 
more than anything else in the world. And that enthusiastic be¬ 
lief becomes contagious, and my two-minute interview stretches 
into an hour and a half, without one tedious or tiresome moment 
in it, because if I cannot hold my prospect’s attention as tensely 
as if he were attending a play, then I am beaten. 

The closing is simple and natural. It started with the first 
word I uttered. There may be a psychological closing moment. 
I don’t know. But I do know that from the first word I have 
spoken I have been ready to close. My pen has been out, my ap¬ 
plication blank has been in plain sight all the time. You know a 
man may be gun-shy, but if he sees the gun or the dotted line for 
ten or fifteen minutes, he loses his fear of it. 

I never go back for a second call without a definite appoint¬ 
ment. I never send samples or illustrations or letters. I stand 
or fall by the first interview. If there is a valid reason why we 
cannot do business then and there, I want to know it. But the 
idea of chasing, pestering, and becoming other than a respected 
friend is too repugnant for me to entertain. 

Getting In. By C. J. Rockwell. 

In passing associates or subordinates procedure must be modi¬ 
fied according to the status of the individual, since obviously the 
same procedure cannot be employed in passing a secretary and 
an office boy. These have a responsibility imposed upon them 
by their chief and the salesman must meet them with a recog- 

80 


THE APPROACH 


nition of this fact. On the other hand, since they are accustomed 
to taking directions, a direct command, properly given may be 
employed. 

For an example of such a command, while recognizing the sub¬ 
ordinates responsibility, the salesman might say, “Please tell Mr. 
Prospect that Mr. Salesman has an important question to ask him 
which requires his personal consideration.” 

As an illustration of an appeal to both curiosity and self in¬ 
terest, suppose the salesman says, “Please tell Mr. Prospect that 
Mr. Salesman has a message for him regarding his personal in¬ 
vestments.’' 


6 


81 


CHAPTER IV 


PRESENTING THE CASE 

Let the Prospect Visualize. By H. L. Stanfield. 

Many times I approach prospects knowing that they need more 
protection, yet with no idea of just what argument will move 
them. Of course I try to learn everything possible about a man 
before tackling him, and thus fit the presentation to his insurance 
needs, but many men resent having you know too much about 
their private affairs. If you show that you have been picking up 
information about him, the prospect most times will be resentful. 

So I have a system which permits The prospect to visualize 
what more life protection will do for him. I have arranged a 
little formula and carry it in my mind. It is based on the as¬ 
sumption that there are four foundation reasons why men buy 
life insurance: 

1. To pay all debts at death. 

2. For the family to own a home unmortgaged. 

3. To provide an adequate income for the widow—an income 
that will give the comfort which the husband has always provided 

4. An income in old age for the insured himself. 

I manage to suggest these four ideas early in the conversation. 
By watching the prospect closely I can tell which arouses his 
interest. Then I go after him on that kind of a contract. 

When the Prospect Asks About the Cost. By Frederick A. 

Wallis. 

“How much will the premium be?” asks the prospect. And 
right away the new man in the insurance business pulls out his 
little book and tells him, “That will cost you $400.” 

I want to impress upon you that it will not cost him anything 
of the kind. Say to him, “Under the laws of the State of New 
York, while you pay a first-year premium of $400, you are en¬ 
titled to a dividend, and you are going to have a dividend at the 
end of the first year.” Isn’t that so? You can’t tell how much 
it is going to be, but it will be a substantial one. The next year 

82 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


the premium drops down to $357, or whatever the experience of 
the company is, and the third year something less, and so on 
down the next year and the next. If you tell him $400, you tell 
him one truth, but you do not tell him the whole truth. Suppose 
you sell him a twenty-payment plan and you tell him the premium 
is $400, you have told him one truth and nineteen something else. 

I came over from New York to Philadelphia this morning. 
When I started out from Pennsylvania station we rolled along 
at about ten miles an hour, we got into the tunnel and shot 
through at about twenty-five miles an hour, then we got out into 
the Jersey meadows and we must have clipped off about forty 
miles; then we got into Newark and there the law took hold and 
we slipped down to ten miles; then we got out on the long 
reaches of level track and we jumped her up to seventy-two 
miles an hour, and pretty soon we pulled into Broad Street 
Station. Suppose I had said to that engineer, “What was our 
time coming over from New York to Philadelphia today ?” 
He could not say, “I ran ten miles an hour today,” if he told 
me the truth. He could have said, “I went seventy-two miles 
an hour,” and he would have still told me the truth, and yet he 
would not have told the truth. 

If you get your rate book out and say $40 a thousand you 
say it wrong. There is no poorer salesmanship than to give a 
man a price on a proposition before you sell it to him. 

Cancelling the Mortgage. By William S. Thomas. 

Fred Howlett and I were driving out to see a farmer pros¬ 
pect who greeted us at the gate with: “My wife and I have 
decided not to buy that insurance until we have paid off the 
mortgage on that extra tract we bought.” 

“How much interest are you paying?” asked Howlett. 

“Six and a half per cent,” said the farmer. 

“Suppose,” said Howlett, “that I agree to take up that $2,000 
mortgage and instead of paying you pay me 9% and I’ll 

write into the agreement that in event of your death, I’ll cancel 
the mortgage and give your wife a clear title to the whole 
farm.” 

The farmer accepted on the spot. 

83 


SALES METHODS 


Tact in Referring to “Duty.” By Nate Singleberry. 

It is the duty of every man with dependents to carry enough 
life insurance to protect them, but we fieldmen must use tact 
in making our prospects understand their duty. You and the 
other fellow and I are all resentful when anybody tells us 

what our duty is. We think we know our duties, and to have 

somebody, even a close friend, intimate that we are neglecting 
our duties, makes us angry. A life insurance salesman can do 
little with a resentful prospect. 

Instead of telling a prospect that more life insurance is a 
duty to his family, I offer it as a fine opportunity to do a 
splendid thing for his loved ones. I suggest it in a manner 

which implies that lie desires to do everything possible for 

their immediate and future welfare. A few words about the 
difference between his income while living, and the income of 
his family if his earning power stopped, makes him see his 
duty without mentioning the word. Then I demonstrate that 
insurance achieves the purpose better than any other way. 

The Graphic Method. By Edward A. Woods. 

There is no claim that there is anything in particular new 
about the graphic method. Every solicitor who has done very 
much business has used it. He has shown, for example, his 
own policy; an item in the morning paper about someone’s 
death; the picture of the man’s wife on his own desk; a check 
in payment of a claim; a sample contract; a printed form of 
proposal, such as Earl Manning uses. A graphic method is 
simply intended to gather together a large number of these to 
show how such a method could be used to introduce the subject 
of insurance and have it take just the direction desired. For 
example, if the desire is to introduce the life income idea, show¬ 
ing a check for one month’s income, or showing an item in the 
morning paper how some estate, which was supposed to be 
large, had turned out insolvent, would be appropriate as sort 
of a text in introducing the subject in the way you wanted it 
done. • 

The 50 illustrations of graphic methods given in the report 
of the program as told by the Canadian Life Underwriters As¬ 
sociation really give more ideas along the line intended than 
anything else. For any experienced insurance man to say he 

84 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


docs not use graphic methods simply shows that we have not 
gotten the idea over. 

Franklin Ganse’s inheritance tax wheel, a catalogue of a col¬ 
lege in order to sell an educational policy, and a newspaper ac¬ 
count of the settlement of a large estate, are all methods that 
are intended to be covered by the word “graphic.” 

Four Questions. By C. S. Morton. 

Put the substance of these four questions to your prospect 
and you will come near to finding the correct answer to that 
unexpressed but urgent question which is in the back of the 
mind of every conscientious man: 

1. Is an adequate income provided for your family? 

2. Have you covered all your liabilities with insurance? 

3. Will funds be ready for the education of your children? 

4. Will you have a proper income for yourself in declining 
years ? 

Inheritance Taxes. By E. S. Brashears. 

In submitting a proposal of life insurance for inheritance tax 
purposes you should approach the subject in the same way 
that you approach life insurance to cover any other need. Very 
few people whose estates will have to pay these taxes have ever 
stopped to consider how the payments are to be made or what 
the effect on their estates will be. It is our job to advise them 
and help them plan for that event. 

Your appeal in these cases combines the appeal of love of 
family with an appeal to pride in leaving intact for a man’s 
family the entire amount of his estate at the time of his death. 
Men who have achieved success are justly proud of that fact 
and they have a just pride in leaving their estate intact as a 
monument to them as well as a preventive of want on that part 
of their families. This presents a very definite appeal. Men 
who have built up large businesses from nothing are susceptible 
to the appeal to their pride and they are usually sufficiently care¬ 
ful so that that appeal and the means for meeting it will usually 
produce results. 

Budgeting Life Insurance. By J. S. Sherritt. 

Budgeting life insurance, in other words, classifying needs 

85 


SALES METHODS 


that can be met by life insurance and then building an individual 
program to fit the needs of each client is a matter of applying 
in practice, knowledge which is possessed by any one who has 
given serious thought to life insurance. 

A fundamental principle of salesmanship, whatever the com¬ 
modity or service offered, is that after the prospect's attention 
is gained and his interest aroused, he must be brought t-o a sense 
of need for the article before he will buy it. Before he will 
insure his life adequately, a man must have in view certain 
definite and specific needs which life insurance will fill for him. 
The average man has but a hazy understanding of these needs 
and of the amounts of insurance he must have to meet them. 

In planning your client’s protection, you must decide which 
are the fundamental needs in the event of his death, and must 
provide against them to such an extent as his circumstances 
seem to permit. Then you must adjust this projected insurance 
so as to meet the emergencies of old age and disability in case 
he lives. The cash value of the insurance will automatically give 
protection against financial stringency by serving as a source of 
funds in time of emergency. 

The practical working of this plan of action will be illustrated 
if I tell in some detail of a case in my experience. 

The first that comes to my mind is that of a man thirty-nine 
years old, with a wife slightly younger and a daughter about ten 
years of age. He receives a salary in the neighborhood of $10.- 
000 and owns a residence which is mortgaged. The protection 
includes $2,000 ordinary life bought in 1916; $1,000 20 year en¬ 
dowment bought in 1913; $1,000 25 year endowment in 1913; 
$10,000 endownment at 65 bought in 1920; $2,000 five year renewal 
term. He has $5,500 in the insurance fund of a professional 
organization. 

He was approached by one of our salesmen in this manner: 

"Mr. -, you are a man who I believe would be interested 

In certain things our office is doing in the way of life insurance 
service. We have had you on our list for some time. We do 
not know or care at present how much insurance you are carry¬ 
ing. It is not now our intention to sell you any. We find men 
In your position as a rule fairly well insured as far as amounts 
are concerned, but they have never had that insurance planned so 
it will do exactly what they want it to do. You have been buying 

86 



PRESENTING THE CASE 


insurance from your friends and others and have never had it 
adjusted to fit your particular needs. It is up to you to say 
whether or not this is your condition. If it is, you need our serv¬ 
ice. It happens that we know your needs fairly well. If you 
will be kind enough to give us the amount, kind and plan of the 
insurance which you now carry, we will take that as a basis and 
work up a comprehensive life insurance plan, covering your needs 
as we see them. Please bear in mind that we will utilize to the 
fullest extent your existing insurance and will not recommend 
any more unless you need it.” 

We worked out and submitted a plan covering the following 
needs: 

Purpose No. 1. Cash sufficient to meet the state inheritance 
taxes, accrued local taxes, administration charges, current ob¬ 
ligations and other expenses incident to death. No. 2. Cash 
to mother in case of death. No. 3. A monthly income to your 
wife for life and after her death to your daughter for life. No. 
4. A college educational provision for your daughter in case of 
your death. No. 5. An old age provision for you and your 
wife should you both live. No. 6. An old age provision for 
you, should you only live. No. 7. An income to you in case of 
total and permanent disability. No. 8. A savings fund. 

Additional insurance necessary to carry out the program sug¬ 
gested, $5,200 ten year term in small policies to be dropped as 
obligations are paid off. 

For purpose No. 3, $15,211 ordinary life, combined with part 
of present insurance to provide income for wife and daughter. 

For purpose No. 4, $1,800 ten year term combined with present 
$2,000 short term endownment as an educational provision, to be 
dropped if he lives until his daughter's college course is com¬ 
pleted. Total $22,211. 

He gave our plan fair and serious consideration. Our agent 
talked it over with him before his wife and his wife’s parents. 
They were all very much delighted with it, except his wife who 
suggested that the total premiums amounting to $1,145.00 gross 
was more than they could afford to pay. Our agent asked her 
how much they were obliged to save under present conditions to 
protect themselves against the necessities of old age and early 
death. She said they were obliged to save considerably more 
than this. When it was pointed out to her that she was ac- 

87 


SALES METHODS 


eomplishing all of this with more certainty at the same time 
reducing the amount to be paid annually, she readily approved 
the plan. 

Question of the Cost. By Frederick A. Wallis. 

It makes all the difference in the world how you announce the 
cost—or flash it on your prospect. Men are impressed and car¬ 
ried away by a soft, mellow light, but then again, sometimes the 
lightning comes and strikes people dead. So it is with the rate. 
You can make a splendid impression on him with it, or you can 
flash it so that it absolutely strikes and blinds him and then you 
wonder why you haven't written him. 

I do not know anything that kills a sale so quickly as to pick 
up a rate book and start looking for a rate. If I begin to hunt 
through this book to see how much it is going to cost, I have 
lost the prospect’s confidence. If you go into a store to buy col¬ 
lars and ties, and you tell the salesman what you want and he 
has to look through half a dozen boxes, and then asks some other 
fellow, “Say, do we have such and such a collar?” you have lost 
confidence in that fellow. 

When the time comes to state your premium, don't flash it on 
him. There is nothing in the world kills a case like saying, 
“You are 44. Let me see, your rate is so much.” Some fellow 
has just been in who quoted him a rate $2 less on a 20-pavment 
life policy, and you cannot get that $2 out of that man’s mind. 

If you flash $412 on him, you have lost his interest because he 
thinks he cannot pay $412. But tell him just a little over a dol¬ 
lar a day, and he thinks he can pay it. 

Tell Your Prospect How to Create an Estate. By John J. 

Lentz. 

“To create” is “to form out of nothing.” Thousands of men 
and women must create an estate out of nothing if they hope 
to be able to leave one at death. Federal statistics show that 54 
per cent of our citizens do not even own their homes. In other 
words, more than one-half of our citizens die leaving no roof 
over the heads of their families. 

Statistics show that in spite of our growth in national wealth 
the percentage of mortgaged and rented homes is on the in¬ 
crease. A larger per cent of our homes were mortgaged in 1920 

88 



PRESENTING THE CASE 


than in 1910. In 1890 there were half a million more homes 
rented than were owned; in 1900 a million more were rented than 
owned; in 1910 a million and a half more were rented than 
owned, and in 1920 the rented homes exceeded those owned by 
more than two millions. 

This need not be. Today we have great institutions known as 
fraternal insurance societies and life insurance companies which 
provide, in exchange for small monthly, semi-annual or annual 
payments, a life insurance policy which will create an estate. 

The easiest and simplest way a healthy man or woman can 
create an estate is to take a life insurance policy. A small sum 
will create this estate and all the probate courts and surrogate 
courts of the country say that the life insurance estate is the 
best estate a man or woman can leave because it costs nothing 
to administer. 

There are few people who could rest comfortably over night 
without fire insurance covering their household goods or other 
property and yet statistics show that sixteen deaths occur in the 
homes of Ohio to one fire. An accidental death always means 
a death at the wrong time and statistics show that many deaths 
and diseases are due to accident. This shows clearly the wisdom 
of being prepared. 

It is a sad commentary upon thrift and foresight to be compelled 
to admit that very few have sufficient protection. All who have 
no protection should hasten to apply for it, and those who have 
not a sufficient amount should hasten to increase it. 

Now is the accepted time to prepare for sudden death. Some 
one has said “In a word where death is, there is no time for 
hate.” It is just as true that in a world where death is, there is 
no time for delay in taking out insurance. 

Patriotism means promptness in giving one’s life to protect 
his country and to protect one’s country is to protect one’s home 
and family. There are other forms of patriotism than giving 
one’s life in war and there is no higher form of patriotism than 
giving a pittance out of each day’s earning, such as the price of 
a cigar or a soda, and thus provide against the potter’s field for 
yourself and against poverty and public or private charity for 
your family. Patriotism could take no higher form than that 
self-respect and high sense of duty as a citizen which will make 
every man and every woman feel the necessity and the re- 

89 


SALES METHODS 


spectability of being insured against the poor-house and against 
the charity of relatives and neighbors. Insure and thus “create 
an estate." 

Take His Consent for Granted. By Harry D. Wright. 

Don’t go out to talk insurance. Go out to get the application. 
Give the man something tangible, something visible, use pencil 
and paper. Start writing the application, whether you ever get 
it to the doctor or not. Some of them will go through, some 
will have to be torn up. Connect your selling talk wjth the 
prospect’s interests, not your own. A good salesman never makes 
it easy for the prospect to say “No," and he seldom waits for 
him to say “Yes.” He gets the order by implied consent. He 
does not wait to be told, “Yes, go ahead, write the application." 

We have to show our goods and make it easy for the man to 
take them—to sign the application. Of course he does not “want" 
the insurance. If he did he’d come to the office and you and 
I would not have a job! But he needs it, and we have to try 
to meet his needs. Why do merchants go to great expense in 
dressing their windows—and a little further out the fruit stand 
proprietors and grocers roll barrels out in the morning and then 
roll them back again at night? Why don’t these stores keep all 
this stowed under the counters? Why do they put their goods 
in attractive glass cases? In order to appeal to the eye. We are 
selling something less tangible, but we can show our goods. We 
can use pencil and paper. 

Insuring a Man’s Value, Not His Life. By Joseph W. Briggs. 

What is a man worth to his family? The government has held 
that every laboring man should carry $7,500 insurance and the 
fixed value on the life of a soldier was $10,000. The old- 
fashioned way was to say that if a man had an income of $3,000 
a year that he was worth $50,000. It is, of course, impossible 
for a man to carry that amount of life insurance. 

We are not selling insurance, we are selling values. A woman 
of 60 in good health with grown children is not worth one cent; 
she has no value. Insane people frequently live a very long life. 
One of the reasons that they are not insurable is because they 
are a liability and not an asset. I frequently say: “We are not 

90 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


insuring your life; we want to get your value. What would the 
wife and kids lose if you should die tonight?’' 

This thing of values can be impressed upon the man in many 
ways, and the more ways we can make him realize that he is a 
value which must be lost, the more likely we are to make the sale, 

I frequently say this, to get his mind to the subject: “Mr. 
Brown, what is that chair worth, $25? If that chair burns, or 
is broken up, you have lost $25. Destruction of that chair means 
loss and every loss must be repaid by someone. If you die to¬ 
night your family have lost your value just as much as you would 
lose, if I would take that chair and break it.” 

Some time ago I called on one of our old policyholders, and I 
wish to tell you just how I handled the case, not as being a par¬ 
ticularly difficult sale to make but to give you an idea of how you 
might be able to use the New York idea and profit as I did. 

After visiting a while I said, “Mr. Brown, how are you fixed 
on insurance?” He said: “T have all I can carry.” “Do you 
know that we have a way of figuring just what a man is worth 
as a machine. Would you like to know just how it works? Do 
you mind if I ask you a few personal questions? How much 
did you make last year? How much did you spend for clothes, 
club dues, life insurance, accident insurance, charity, personal in¬ 
come taxes, etc.” He told me. “Now let us figure how much 
you saved. Then the balance is what it costs you to keep your 
wife and family.” Then multiply the answer by the present 
worth table for his age, showing just-what he was worth as a 
mechanical machine. 

When you have this figured it is not worth very much to you 
except to give the man a very good opinion of his own importance. 
After I had these figures I said: “How much life insurance 
are you carrying?” I multiplied the number of thousands by 6 
per cent., giving him the income his family would obtain. The 
man, of course, was shown that he was way under-insured 
After I fixed the minimum amount of income that he should 
have, I had the beneficiary clauses on these contracts rewritten so 
that the principal would be paid out in 10 years. This would 
give the man a maximum income until the daughter’s education 
was completed. I then wrote the man an income of $40 a month, 
continuous monthly income contract. Then after his children 

91 


SALES METHODS 


are grown the wife will be sure of $40 a month. This means as 
long as she lives. 

Argument Sells Nothing. By Edward A. Woods. 

How do you influence men? It is one of the biggest things 
in the world. It is going to decide who is to be the next Presi¬ 
dent of the United States. One of the things that people have 
sacrificed everything for is that power of influencing men. How 
do you do it? You know that since the days of Greek philosophy 
the teachings of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle have made us thinl; 
that we are creatures of reason. We think that we do things 
because it is the proper and reasonable thing to do. As a mattei 
of fact, a reason is something you sometimes invent after you 
have done a thing to justify you in doing it. We do things firsl 
because we want to and then we give a reason to justify us in 
doing it. 

If you think you can argue a man into buying life insurance, 
just remember the times you have tried to argue your wife into 
doing anything and you will not try it very often. You do nol 
get people to act through argument generally. Did you evei 
stop to think that argument involves taking opposite sides? Did 
you ever convert a man from any church by arguing with him? 
In arguing you naturally take the other side of the question. 
We want people to go along with us, don’t we? Did you gel 
your wife to marry you by arguing with her? Did any of you 
get into church by arguing? Let us get away from the belief 
that argument is an incentive to act. You can’t get people to 
do anything for you by arguing with them. 

Nine-tenths of the things that you and I do are from sugges¬ 
tion. You influence people to act by suggestion rather than by 
argument. You may get the best of the argument but the othei 
fellow will get the application for insurance. If I had been 
taught in my early life not to argue in trying to get a man to do 
what I wanted him to do, how much further along I would now 
have been. 

Suggestion brings instant response. Argument postpones, 
makes deliberation, makes delay. Do you know the fact that il 
is a mental law, just as in physics, that the force of a suggestion 
continues until something stops it? If you plant an idea in a 
man’s mind it will keep going until something stops it. Just lei 

92 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


the idea keep going. Push it from behind but do not put anything 
tn front of it. 

We would rather do an easy thing than a hard thing. One of 
the difficult things for us to do is to make it seem an easy thing 
to pay the premium deposit. State it this way: “If you will 
pay us $20 per month we will pay your wife $30 per month.” 
Belittle the premium and enlarge the benefit. Or tell him we 
will give his wife $10,000 for $400. Plow many of us do quite 
the reverse. We have a psychological difficulty to overcome 
One way is to write a check and place it before him, saying, 
"“Wouldn't you like to have that?” Make the $10,000 that he oi 
his family arc not going to get for some time the big thing, and 
make the deposit the little thing. I recall the story of the sales¬ 
man who was telling his prospect all the desirable things the 
contract would do and the prospect interrupted by asking how 
much it would cost, but the salesman kept on talking about the 
benefits and the man again interrupted by asking what it would 
cost. The salesman replied: “It is so small an amount that I 
am ashamed to tell you but it would be just about the cost of 
two or three of those”—pointing to a box of cigars on the table. 
He was simply following a psychological lead. 

Ways of Being Convincing. By C. A. Shaw. 

Always look a man in the eye when talking to him; do not 
turn to a third person for confirmation of any of your state¬ 
ments ; make your remarks so strong, so convincing, that the 
subject must feel that you are sure of what you are talking about 
and that you need no confirmation. 

Never talk with a third person present, unless he has brought 
you to the subject or is a very, very intimate friend, a brother or 
very close relative. 

Never interrupt a prospect when he is talking; even if you 
know he is wrong, let him finish. 

If you are talking and he interrupts, let him do so. Stop at 
once, for what he says is sure to give you a clue as to his 
thoughts. You can talk at any time; but the proverb says: “If 
a man talks he is bound to say something." So let him talk; all 
the world loves an audience. 


93 


SALES METHODS 


Discuss Price Last. By R. W. Stevens. 

If you have ever had an opportunity to observe a mediocre 
life insurance salesman in action you know that he generally 
opens his interview something like this: “Mr. Prospect, how 
old are you?” Having received the information he begins turn¬ 
ing the pages of his rate book until he finds the page he is look¬ 
ing for and says, “I can offer you a policy at an annual cost of 
$34.08 per thousand,” after which introduction he begins to talk 
about the contract, and nine times out of ten, the burden of 
his talk will be about cash and loan values with but very little 
said as to the real purpose of life insurance: namely, the protec¬ 
tion of the prospect's dependents in the event of his untimely 
death. The first thought put into the mind of the prospect thus 
approached is the price of the contract, which he has been in¬ 
vited to consider, and throughout the interview those figures, 
$34.08, stand out more prominently in his mind than any other 
feature to which his attention may be directed. 

The amount of insurance which you are seeking to place and 
the annual deposit required to secure it are the last things that 
should be discussed in the insurance interview; since, until you 
have created in the mind of your prospect a desire to possess that 
which you are telling him about, it is of utter indifference to him 
whether he is expected to pay ten'cents or ten hundred dollars 
and you cannot get his money. 

When the Prospect Wants to Discuss Rates. By J. Elliott 
Hall. 

The other day a man called up over the telephone and said: 
“My name is Jones, and Mr. Brown, who is a friend of mine, 
told me that you did him a very valuable service the other day 
in arranging his life insurance, and I believe that I might be in¬ 
terested in having you do something of the same sort for me. 
What is your rate on a 20-payment life contract at my age which 
is 48?” 

“Well, it is $3 a thousand.” 

“What are you talking about?” 

“All right then, it is $100 per $1,000. What is the difference, 
what does it all mean to you? Suppose I tell you that we have 
insurance for $3 a $1,000, it does not mean anything to you. It 
does not tell you what you are going to get. You simply know 

94 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


that that is the rate on so much insurance. At the same time, 
we have insurance that sells for $186 per $1,000. How can I tell 
you what our rate is without telling you what you get for your 
money?” 

“Well, do you want to give me your price on insurance, or don’t 
you ?” 

“Mr. Jones, do you buy your clothes over the telephone, or if 
you were going to get a new house would you call up a real 
estate agent and ask him to give you one or would you find out 
just what you were getting by a personal examination? Do you 

4 

drive an automobile?” 

“Yes.” 

“What kind have you?” 

“I don’t know that it is any business of yours, but I drive a 
Hudson.” 

“All right, then, why didn’t you get a Ford? There is really 
no such thing as a rate on our life insurance, because we have so 
many different kinds to sell.” 

In this case my unusual way of replying, instead of antagoniz¬ 
ing the prospect, aroused interest. An interview was arranged 
for and the case closed. 

Discover His Motive. By 'George Salinger. 

Motives rule the world. The motives which prompt men to 
buy protection might be classified as: 

1. Love of family. 

2. Fear of misfortune. 

3. Gain of money. 

The sale of every contract you ever sold or ever will sell may 
be traced directly to the presence of one or more of these motives 
in the purchaser. It shows then that when you have once deter¬ 
mined the ruling motive of your prospect towards insurance, be 
it love of money, your next move is to make him think the 
thoughts which will forcefully demonstrate wherein the protec¬ 
tion of your contract will prevent the occurrence of the contin- 
eency he most fears or further the ambition which is dear to 
him. This will make him desire it, and in turn, resolve to buy it. 

This is the way sales are made—first, the motive must be dis¬ 
covered, then the motive creates the desire and then the desire 

95 


SALKS METHODS 


prompts the resolution. After the controlling motive has been 
discovered, the rest is usually easy for the scientific salesman. 

Buying on the Installment Plan. By E. J. Dunn. 

Not long ago one of our field workers ran across a man who 
said he could not take any life insurance because he could not 
afford it. The worker looked around the room in the man’s home. 
He saw a Victrola and remarked that it was a fine entertainer 
for the family. “Yes,” said the man, “I bought it on the install¬ 
ment plan.” Our worker looked some more and saw several use¬ 
ful sets of books. He praised their appearance as well as their 
quality. “Yes,” said the man, “I bought them on the monthly 
payment plan.” 

Thereupon our worker praised the man’s taste and his thought¬ 
fulness for the comfort of his family. Then the man volunteered 
the information that he had bought his wife a sewing machine 
and washing machine, his boy a bicycle, his girl a knitting and 
weaving machine, and much of their present furniture upon the 
installment plan. “For,” said the man, “while I could have bought 
them for less money cash down, yet I never had enough spot cash 
at any one time. Without the installment plan of payment I 
never could have bought any of these things.” 

This gave our field worker a splendid opening and he went 
right through it. He said, “Now, look here; you are too good a 
man to do things by halves. I know you want your wife and boy 
and girl to enjoy all these home comforts with you and I am dead 
sure that you hope they can continue to .enjoy them should you 
be taken away. By sacrifice and planning you have provided 
these things. As long as you are strong and employed you will 
keep them here. Why not close up the only open gap and keep 
them here even after your death? 

“You can buy life insurance upon the installment basis—the 
monthly payment plan. It is within your reach just as truly as 
were the Victrola, these books, the sewing machine, washing ma¬ 
chine, bicycle, knitting and weaving machines and this new furni¬ 
ture. The life insurance, so bought, will bring you peace, com¬ 
fort and assurance of mind, and it will guarantee the future of 
your wife, your boy and your girl. Close up this one remaining 
gap! Finish the work that you have so well begun!” 

96 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


The man dropped his head for a moment and then said, “Old 
man, I never thought of it in that light before. You have helped 
me by making me think. I’ll take $3,00 with you.” And he did. 

In an easy, pleasant way this field worker made an opening and 
took advantage of it. His credit marks show that he does this 
systematically and the small lapse among his new policyholders 
shows that he does it well. 

The Impression on the Prospect’s Mind. By V. A. Young. 

Did it ever occur to you that when you call on a man or woman 
to talk insurance, your prospect ordinarily has no notion at all 
about your proposition—neither does he have any idea as to what 
he ought to do with it. 

His mind is like a piece of plain paper or like a sensitized 
photographic plate, ready to receive the impressions you place up¬ 
on it. Or it may be likened to an unshaped piece of moulder’s 
clay awaiting only your manipulation to assume form. 

If you are a skilful salesman you will be able to make a pros¬ 
pect think what you want him to think and until he does this, you 
have very little opportunity to sell him, for salesmanship is mere¬ 
ly a matter of establishing in the mind of the prospect the thing 
that yon already have in your mind. 

When you begin an interview, remember this suggestion and 
start the moulding process right. Do not forget that every word 
that you say makes its impression and that it helps or hinders the 
formation of the image that you are trying for. 

It may be that your prospect will be in a negative mood even, 
which means that your work must be the more skilfully done. 

The experienced salesman makes a shrewd guess as to what 
is going on in the mind of his prospect. He knows when he has 
said the right thing. He knows what to enlarge upon and he 
knows what to leave untouched. 

The skilful salesman knows when he has said enough—for, be¬ 
lieve me, many a voluble talker has reached the buying point and 
has gone away beyond it before he came to his senses. 

To make up the prospect’s mind for him means that you must 
know in advance exactly what you are going to accomplish for 
the only thing that you can put into the mind of the prospect is 
what you alreadv have in your own. If you think and have rea- 
7 97 


SALES METHODS 


son to believe that your prospect ought to buy $2000 worth of in¬ 
surance, drift him toward this point by degrees, especially if there 
are indications that instead of buying $2000 worth he would buy 
$500 or a $1000 if left alone. 

Remember that he will buy whatever you convince him that he 
needs—and that is your job—to convince him that $2000 is the 
right amount. 

Big Price and Large Quantity. By L. R. Cushman. 

A salesman whose income ran into five figures told me how 
he overcame selling fright. One day he suddenly realized how 
this kind of stalling interfered with his selling. He decided to 
take the bull by the horns. His method went to the extreme. He 
had found that price often loomed big in the prospective cus¬ 
tomers^ mind. He picked out a man whom he thought was of 
this particular type. Sitting in the objector’s office, he began, “I 
dropped in to see you about taking on our line.” Here he paused 
for an instant and eyed the victim speculatively. “But, of course, 
it will cost you a lot of money.’' 

The prospect blinked a little, and then began to get red. “Well,” 
was the reply, “What of it? Don’t you think I have ‘the lot of 
money?’ ” 

Thereafter the salesman stopped pussyfooting on buyer’s ob¬ 
jections. By taking hold of them right at the start, he has found 
that generally the objection very shortly vanishes in thin air. 

Selling fright often attaches to a buyer the wrong kind of a 
reputation. One case in point will illustrate a common experi¬ 
ence. A Western buyer had the reputation of wanting to buy 
only in small quantities. A salesman coming for the first time in¬ 
to that territory had convinced himself that this customer would 
be better served if he would buy several times his usual quota of 
a certain kind of goods. The salesman expressed his belief to 
some brother salesman. They laughed at him. He landed in the 
big man’s office. The big man looked rather bored. The sales¬ 
man began, “Mr. S—I want to talk to you about buying $50,000 
worth of our goods in one shipment!” The big man leaned for¬ 
ward with sparkling eyes. He smashed his fist upon the table. 
“Good !” he said, “That sounds like real business.” Then con¬ 
fidently, “Say, dy’e know—I get tired of folks running in to see 

98 





PRESENTING THE CASE 


* 


me all day long about $200 worth of this and $1,000 worth of 
that!” 

Looking back it is easy to guess what had happened. A few 
salesmen who had selling fright, and were content to accept little 
orders had given the buyer a reputation for ordering small. One 
man with real courage showed them how wrong they were. 

Don’t Talk Past the Signing Point. By A. J. Casise. 

A number of life insurance salesmen were discussing the fol¬ 
lowing question, “What is the hardest point in selling one of our 
policies?” 

An inspector of agencies was holding this meeting and he had 
one by one the various agents answer the question. The majority 
agreed that the sticking point was to get the prospect to sign the 
application. The experiences of the various agents in this matter 
were summarized in the following: 

“The sticking point is to get the prospect to sign the applica¬ 
tion. I can approach them all right; it isn’t hard to get them in¬ 
terested in what I have to say; but when it comes to putting their 
name in black and white at the bottom of an application a great 
many of them balk.” 

“Why, of course.” said the steady application writer, who had 
been getting applications every week consecutively for a couple 
of hundred weeks, when he began to talk. “But it’s a mighty 
good sign when a man hesitates to sign his name. If a prospect 
signs without any trouble, you want to look out for him. He may 
have some ulterior motive for wanting the insurance. He may 
want it worse than the company will want to give it. He may 
know something about himself that leads him to want to get in 
quick— and you find out later after spending time and effort on 
the case that his application is turned down. At any rate, it is 
safe to be skittish of the signature that comes too easy. A man 
who agrees in writing to pay out annually $50 or $100 or more 
for many years without being thoroughly convinced that he is 
getting a good bargain is either a fool or a knave. I never like to 
find a fellow who is too easy to sell. 

“It’s usually hard to get a responsible man to sign and I hope 
it always will be. Every one of us has enough cancellations and 
enough bother over irresponsible signatures. And if all one had 

99 


SALES METHODS 


to do was to ask a man to sign an application ’twould be so easy 
there’d be no fun in it—and no money. But I have a few sugges¬ 
tions which may help you to bring the good, hard-headed busi¬ 
ness man up to the point of application. 

“I believe too many talk right on past the signing point. I be¬ 
gan to get more applications signed when I began to assume and 
take for granted, after having accumulated enough facts to make 
what I had to say worth while, that the man ivould sign the ap¬ 
plication if given the opportunity. And they do. 

“A great many writers lose applications by not keeping com¬ 
mand of the conversations themselves.” 

“Do all companies have this clause about dividends, or this one 
about disability benefits?” a possible buyer may ask, when you 
are in the midst of your argument. 

“If you stop to answer that or any other similar question then, 
the prospect will lose the run of your argument and most of its 
force. The thing to do when a man breaks in with almost any 
question is to say, ‘Yes, Mr. Smith, I’ll tell you about that in just 
a moment, as soon as I finish explaining this point. I’ll give the 
full details about every clause to be in your policy.’ 

“Then keep right on with your regular talk and ten to one be¬ 
fore you finish he will have entirely forgotten the question. The 
fact is that it is hard for any man to keep his mind concentrated 
on any one subject, and for some men it is almost impossible. 
It is the business of the insurance writer not only to keep his 
own mind concentrated on the question in hand, but to force the 
man he is trying to insure to also concentrate his mind/* 

Improving the Canvass. By R. P. Burns. 

How can we improve our canvass? Let us begin by preaching 
the advantages of life insurance on the living side, instead of 
talking on the dark and gloomy death side. Preach sunshine in¬ 
stead of gloom. 

Men are tired of having the hearse backed up to the door for 
them and having an old express wagon taking their family to the 
poor house, and few men enjoy being lectured on their duty to 
their family, especially by a stranger. 

One may use the sentimental side but he should first gain the 
attention, and build up the frame work of his canvass with busi- 

100 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


ness argument, and then, by the use of a few human interest 
stories, drive home hie arguments on the sentimental side, as 
occasion will permit. V isualize the advantages of doing, rather 
than the penalty of not doing. I have no objection to a story 
made up entirely of blue sky, so long as it illustrates the truth. 

By being ever on the alert, reading insurance magazines, talk¬ 
ing to other agents, attending conventions, etc., one will be ab3e 
to pick up ideas, illustrations and arguments. When we meet an 
agent of another company, we should draw from him some good 
ideas, if possible, instead of impressing him with what a big fel¬ 
low we are. 

Try out a new argument a few times, and watch results. If it 
does not work well, drop it. The most valuable thing to me, in 
relation to my canvass, has been to write out my arguments. 
When we take what seems to be a good point, and reduce it to 
white paper, it sometimes proves to be a pretty flimsy argument. 
I have frequently offered this advice but I have found no one 
who would follow it. If each one of us were called into the of¬ 
fice of some high class business man, and asked for a good rea¬ 
son why he should buy life insurance, I wonder if each of us 
could give three or four good, clear, intelligent arguments, or 
would our reply be something like the bashful young man propos¬ 
ing to his sweetheart. 

Logic vs. Sympathy. By W. S. Walker. 

The writer once had occasion to be in a court room and heard 
a verdict of “not guilty” rendered in the case of a young fellow 
who was mixed up in a shooting affray and was being tried on 
circumstantial evidence. When the state's attorney made his 
plea, he brought out in a thundering manner cold facts and ap¬ 
pealed to the reasoning powers of the jurymen who, had their 
verdict been prompted by severe justice and reason, would have 
rendered it “guilty.” 

When the attorney for the defense was half through with his 
last appeal you could see one juryman wipe a tear from his eye, 
then you could hear someone in back of you or at your side 
cough, and a convulsive sob here and there throughout the room. 
And yet this was where and the manner in which the “business 
of the law” was being conducted. This business was not being 

101 


SALES METHODS 


handled from a purely logical standpoint appealing only to the 
reasoning powers. The strongest appeal was made through the 
emotions. 

Take this lesson home, you insurance salesmen. First and 
foremost study well the proposition you have to sell, remembering 
at all times that without knowledge we cannot have enthusiasm, 
not the kind that shouts from housetops—but enthusiasm that 
radiates sincerity of purpose. When you go into a store to buy 
a commodity and you state your needs to the clerk, if he under¬ 
stands his business and can answer your questions intelligently, 
he invites your confidence. His “I want to be of service” manner 
aids you materially in making your selections. 

When you solicit a prospect for insurance create an interest in 
your proposition, answer all his questions courteously and truth¬ 
fully, and thus awaken his confidence in you. Appeal to his emo¬ 
tions as well as to his reason. Picture to him his happy home. 
His home is much like yours. He has work now, and want is 
unknown. Then he is brought home from work injured, and 
stays in bed for a number of weeks. His income is stopped, his 
savings gradually diminish, and his wife and children are in need, 

and he in bed and unable to earn a wage. 

* 

Holding Attention. By A. Gordon Ramsay. 

The man who is new in the business, will find it a great temp¬ 
tation to assume that a question about another type of policy, 
indicates that the prospect can be more readily interested in that 
other type of policy, and yet I believe that in the majority of 
cases, the prospect is unconciously testing the agent, in order to 
determine whether or not that agent really knows, and really be¬ 
lieves, what he is talking about. As a rule, the applicant merely 
requires to be convinced that the representative of the life in¬ 
surance company can give him the type of advice he needs. If 
that representative jumps about in his advice, in order to follow 
every whim of the prospect, the latter loses confidence and in¬ 
terest. 

This brings me to what in my opinion means an interview. 1 
went into a chap’s office the other day to discuss a matter. He 
began signing letters, and fiddling with papers, so I stopped in 
the middle -of my remark. He said, “Go ahead, I am listening.’' 

102 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


I refused to go on until I had his entire attention, and he quite 
appreciated the point. You won’t sell him without it, and you 
cheapen yourself and your proposition in his eyes. In many cases 
it will pay to concentrate your efforts on securing a proper in¬ 
terview, and to refuse to go into the subject until you get that 
interview. 

Both Sides of the Picture. By E. W. Nothstine. 

Did you ever try painting the picture on both sides? Try it 
out by telling your prospect all about all the good points of a con¬ 
tract, the advantages, what it will do for him, his family, his old 
age, etc. Then, if he does not show enough interest to get busy 
with the pen, give him a peep at the other side. Tell him that our 
guess is there w'as almost a half million people declined for in¬ 
surance last year, because they had waited so long that they were 
not insurable. There were over five thousand who made appli¬ 
cation, but failed to get examined or to properly complete the 
transaction and died without the insurance. We will venture the 
statement that in the United States alone, more than a million 
people die each year who had intended to “take more insurance,” 
but just put it off or neglected to do so until it was too late. 
There is a very slight lone dividing those who do and those who 
don’t, and those who did and those who didn’t. But oh what a 
difference it makes and what a trail of sorrow, hardships and 
unhappiness could be avoided if good intentions had only been 
carried out in time. 

Controlling the Interview. By A. D. Anderson. 

Needless to say a salesman should dominate the interview and 
control the conversation, otherwise the prospect’s mind will get 
off the track, and if you allow some foreign subject to enter the 
discussion it is certain to mar in some degree the clearness with 
which you paint the picture before his mind’s eye. 

As to whether or not you will control the interview, much de¬ 
pends on your own mental attitude at the time. If you are in a 
positive, optimistic, and determined frame of mind you can proba¬ 
bly control the conversation without much trouble. On the oth¬ 
er hand, if you are in a negative, pessimistic and lackadaisical 
frame of mind you should either convert yourself immediately or 

103 


SALES METHODS 


go and have a talk with somebody so as to change your mental 
attitude towards the things of the day. If you have ever studied 
the subject of suggestion and auto-suggestion you will readily un¬ 
derstand how comparatively easy it is to keep control of your own 
mental attitude at all times. 

You have heard the phrase that “Enthusiasm is catching” and 
this is a scientific fact. Your mind is plastic and so is that of 
your prospect, that is, it readily absorbs impressions of sight and 
sound, etc. So when you speak it is not only the words you say 
but also the spirit in which you say them that forms the impres¬ 
sion on the mind of the prospect, either for or against your prop¬ 
osition. 

And in view of the foregoing facts you can readily see the im¬ 
portance of controlling and dominating the interview, because the 
law works both ways. If you allow the prospect to control the 
conversation he will soon be influencing your mind and you will 
probably not get anywhere. So as you are there to sell him—do 
not let him sell you. 

When the Prospect Asks Questions. By Frederick A. Wallis. 

If your prospect asks a question, you are making fine progress; 
but if he starts right in by praising your contract, you want to 
get up and get out. When I was a boy in the South I was in the 
dry goods business, and a woman came in to buy a silk dress. 
The dressmaker told me to “get down that piece of blue silk, the 
one just in,” and the woman started right off by saying, “That 
is beautiful. That is all silk, isn’t it? Isn’t it lovely?” I used 
to think, "Well, I’ll sell this one.” But the dressmaker knew 
better. She would say, “Get that piece of red.” When I put 
that on the counter she would say, “That is beautiful,” and I 
would think, “Maybe she’ll buy this one instead of the blue,” but 
she didn’t buy either one. Then the dressmaker would ask, “Any 
shade you wanted in particular?” “Why, yes. I thought of a 
blue gray.” 

When the blue gray was brought out, she would say, “Is that 
all silk? How wide is it? How much it is worth?” When she 
asked a lot of questions about it, that was the piece of goods she 
was interested in. 

And when you go to sell a policy, and the prospect begins to 
praise it, you won’t sell it; but if he begins to ask questions and 

104 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


say, “Do you mean to say that your company will do thus and so? 
How much docs this thing cost?” Then you are going to sell 
him—if you don’t spoil it by telling him the premium right away. 

I think we talk about the features of this wonderful policy en¬ 
tirely too fast—very often. If I throw a bucket of water on this 
table it will all run off. But if I drop it on a drop at a time, it 
will soak in. 

Don’t Be an Encyclopedia. By James E. Kavanaugh. 

The inexperienced field man is apt to go out and act more like 
an encyclopedia than a salesman. By that I mean he is very likely 
to display his knowledge of the life insurance business to the 
man who will listen to him, telling him much about the business, 
much about his company and answering questions which may be 
put to him, and (if he is not careful) is very liable to get into 
arguments. He is very likely to become the representative (or 
the misrepresentative of some other company, fraternal order or 
society. If he is not careful, the conversation will be controlled 
by the prospect and not by the agent. 

The salesman who goes out with a story to tell and with noth¬ 
ing else to tell; with his mind made up to tell that story, is more 
likely to become a success than the man who goes out “to get 
acquainted with a man”; or possibly “to talk life insurance”; to 
talk politics; to talk about baseball or the weather, etc. 

“Stick to your text” is a good motto. It is always a pretty 
good idea to have a “text to which to stick,” and it seems to me 
that the text a life insurance salesman ought to have is the back¬ 
bone of some policy over which he is enthusiastic. He wants to 
have that policy in his own head before he can put it in the head 
of somebody else. 

Questions to Ask the Man Who Cannot Make Up His Mind. 

By a writer in Mutual Underwriter. 

1. Do you suppose a man ever died fully insured whose \Udcw 
lamented the fact that he had not invested his money in some 
other manner? 

2. Do you suppose a man ever died without life insurance who 
did not regret—too late—negligence to provide for the future? 

3. Did you ever meet a man who was physically unable to take 
life insurance who did not wish he had insured years before? 

105 


SALES METHODS 


4. Did you ever hear of a widow that wished her husband had 
put his money in the bank instead of buying insurance? 

5. What would you think of one who would refuse to insure 
his house against fire but instead put the premiums in the bank? 

6. Do you believe there is anyone who would not insure if he 
knew death would come to him within five, ten or fifteen years? 

7. Do you know of any widow who has had to take her chil¬ 
dren out of school because her husband during his life-time be¬ 
lieved he had plenty of time to take out insurance? 

8. Did you ever hear an old man say he wished he had taken 
insurance in his younger days so that the premiums would not 
have been so high? 

V/ords that Convince. By A. R. Piper. 

After canvassing a deaf mute for life insurance, and succeed¬ 
ing in writing him, I took up the paper I had used and looked at 
it. I had confined myself to simple language. There was cooking 
going on, and I said “Cooking smells good.’’ There were chil¬ 
dren about and I said, “Nice boys and girls.” When I was 
through with that canvass with a policy for $5,000 I looked at 
what I had written and counted up all the words that had ap¬ 
pealed to him, and they were such words as “Love,” “Good 
food,” “ Happy,” “Home,” “Mother,” “Father,” “Boy,” “Girl,” 
“Joy.” It was the simple strong words that had appealed to him, 
because they had brought conviction into his soul. 

Use of Tricks. By G. J. A. Reany. 

My last argument shows that the subjective has no value un¬ 
less the man has by diligent work placed that value there objec¬ 
tively. That is, the toil of his ordinary mind precedes necessar¬ 
ily, any effect that he can have sub-conciously. 

The use of tricks in salesmanship generally I would discour¬ 
age. For instance the matter of flattery. There are very few 
men who can flatter you without your knowing it, and there are 
very few men you can flatter without them knowing it, and as a 
rule a cheap line of salesmanship to flatter a prospect. 

I know a salesman whose favorite method of selling is to 
carry in his pocket a photograph of his own wife and children, 
and if he is appealing to a man who has children, his appeal is 
based upon protection for his family. At an early part of the 

106 


PRESENTING THE CASE 


interview, he gets this photograph out and shows it to the man 
to register the impression on the man’s mind of his own family. 
This particular salesman is a social creature; he has a passion 
for his own children, he loves the children of other men, and he 
can naturally take out the photograph of his children because 
they are a part of his life. Let an old bachelor of fifty winters 
try this trick, and see how it doesn't work. When a salesman 
uses a trick of any kind, it must be a trick that fits the salesman. 
That is my point. 

Creating Desire. By James C. Heyer. 

Desire means to long for the possession of, to wish for, eager¬ 
ness to obtain. The salesman of commercial accident and health 
insurance should fix in mind the fact that certain essential prin¬ 
ciples must be followed if real success is to be attained. The 
most important factor in any sale is DESIRE. Desire must 
exist in the prospect’s mind before he will even think of pur¬ 
chasing. The salesman must, therefore, create desire for his 
contract before he explains it. 

Consider for example, the real estate salesman who has a 
prospect for a residence on his list. This salesman would make 
very few sales if he merely took the prospect out to the residence 
and said, “Look it over; if it’s what you want you can have 
it for 25,000/’ A real estate sale follows the same laws or prin¬ 
ciples that control an insurance sale. Desire is what makes the 
sale, so that salesman starts to create desire the minute he gets 
the prospect in his automobile to go and see the property. He 
starts by telling about the many features that make the location 
particularly desirable—the trolley being within two blocks—the 
place being far enough away from industries to eliminate dirt 
and smoke—the land being high, thus preventing damp cellars, 
etc. As he approaches the property, he remarks about the excel¬ 
lent condition the place is in, the beautiful lawn, and by that 
time the prospect feels as if the place were actually his, because 
the desire to possess it has been created. 

That’s desire, and we as insurance salesmen must know how, 
and be able to create it, or sales are not going to be made. Fix 
in your mind that you will have to create desire for your cover¬ 
age. It is not difficult to do this. The ability comes naturally 

107 


SALES METHODS 


from a knowledge of your proposition and sound business sense . 
in using this knowledge. 

After introducing yourself to your prospect, don’t resort to 
the stereotyped method of saying you would like to explain an 
accident and health contract. Instead, say that you have a 
proposition you know will interest him and that if he will be 
obliging enough to give you about 15 minutes you will explain 
it. “After I have explained the proposition it will be a pleas¬ 
ure for me to act on your decision. If you want it, we can close; 
if you are not interested, I will peddle my papers.” 

That makes a good opening. No business man will tell you that 
he is not interested in your proposition until he at least finds 
out what it is, so “watch your step” and make sure you don’t tell 
him in your introduction what you want to talk about. With 
this kind of approach you will find you can secure interviews; 
and interviews count. 


108 


CHAPTER V 


MEETING OBJECTIONS 

Each Objection Brings Forth a New “Hook” in “Hook Can¬ 
vass.” By Walter Farrell. 

The “hook canvass” is so called because of its construction, 
and is built with ten hooks in one. Each hook is a closing argu¬ 
ment and it is possible to close with the first hook; continuing 
to use as many hooks one by one as are necessary; each hook, if 
it does not close, forces the right objection which leads to the 
next hook. 

In this “How I Closed My Hardest Case,” it was necessary to 
use only six of the ten hooks, as follows: 

Mr. Blank is a well-to-do strong minded Swede farmer, age 
45 years. For no less than 15 years to my knowledge, life in¬ 
surance men including myself had failed in closing him for the 
amount of insurance he should have. 

I opened with: “When you die my company will not have to 
pay your wife a cent.” Immediately his thoughts were, “That’s 
right, because I do not have a policy with you.” I followed with: 
“There are only two reasons why you do not have life insurance; 
either you do not have the money to pay for it or you cannot 
pass the required examination to get it.” He knew well enough 
that he had the money to pay for it, so his inner mind centered 
strongly on whether or not he really could get it, and he said: 
“Maybe I can’t get it.” I said: “It won’t cost you a cent to try 
it; if you pass the doctor you will get the policy and its benefits; 
if you don’t pass it is worth $100 to you to know the reason.” 

This was my first hook; and it forced the objection of: “I 
carry $3,000 and I guess that’s enough.” I asked, “How much 
does your wife carry?” To which he replied, “None.” “Yes, 
she does,” I said, “she carries the difference between the $3,000 
you have and the amount you ought to have. I happen to know 
that you have a loan debt of $15,000, so your wife carries the 
burden of this $12,000 difference.” 

“My wife will get along all right,” he said. “Yes, I know she 
will, but she will get along much better with this insurance 

109 


SALES METHODS 


safeguarding this loan debt. You are her manager; your brain 
is your power plant and it’s good business to insure it for at 
least three-fourths of its value just as you do your live stock 
and your buildings. You are worth more to your family than 
your live stock and your buildings are to you, so let’s fix this 
policy up at least on the same basis.” 

This was the second hook; and it forced this objection: “If 
I carry $10,000 life insurance,” he said, “it will cost me a lot 
of money each year.” “Yes, life insurance does cost money and 
someone, either you or your family, will have to pay for it. If 
you don’t pay for it while you are living, your family will have 
to pa}’ for it after you are gone. You can pay for it easily out 
of your earnings; your family will pay for it in some undesirable 
handicap by doing without it. So you see the cost of having this 
contract is not as great as the probable cost of not having it at 
the time of your death.” 

“By putting that money into a bunch of hogs,” he said, “I 
can double it in three years.” “I know it, but when you die 
you don’t want to leave a bunch of hungry hogs for your wife to 
feed, do you?” “Well, I can put the money in the bank at 4 per¬ 
cent and beat the insurance,” he said. “If that’s so, why does 
every banker carry life insurance?” 

“Now listen,” I said, “with the same money you pay your 
hired man every year you can carry $30,000 life insurance. This 
$30,000 will be paid to you in cash at age 70, or to your family 
in case you do not live that long. Do you think that your hired 
man will make you $30,000 between today and the day of your 
death ?” 

“Well, then,” I said, “let’s put this policy in force right now.” 

This was the third hook, and this was his objection: “Til 
study this over and see you in a few days.” “You won’t gain 
anything in putting this off,” I said. “It’s the same contract you 
will get if you study over it for a year, and besides not having 
this protection for your family you will be losing money every 
day you put it off. Twenty years from to-day at this very hour, 
you can cash this contract for $6,880 and the money is worth 7 
percent interest to you. Can’t you see that by putting this off 
for even one day you will have to wait that one day more in 
maturing the contract and receiving the money, and 7 percent 
interest on this money for one day will amount to exactly $1 32 

110 


MEETING OBJECTIONS 


\ou surely realize that it is not good business judgment to lose 
$1.32 per day by putting off taking this insurance which you can 
carry at a net cost of less than 95 cents per day and that’s why 
I am trying to help you and urging you to put it in force to¬ 
day.” 

This was my fourth hook, and it forced this objection: ‘Til 
talk it over with my wife and see you this evening.” I replied: 
“Don’t do it. This insurance is not for your wife; it’s for your 
widow. Take the contract now and after you have made your 
wife the beneficiary turn it over to her. If you don’t pass the 
doctor then never say a word to her about it, and you will save 
her a lot of worry about your physical condition and your future 
health. I believe you see this clearly, so let’s put the policy in 
force first. The first step is to put your name on this application.” 

This was the fifth hook, and the following objection: “You 
make good money at this business.” “That’s right,” I said, “and 
I am earning it right now. However, it will neither make or 
break me to write this single contract for you. It is but a mo¬ 
mentary gain to me, while it is a lifetime gain to you and your 
family, and that’s why I am urging you to put your name on 
this application.” 

He signed the application. 

“I won’t sign a note,” he said, “until I get the contract.” “The 
society holds me responsible for the examination and the net 
on this policy and obligates me to take such a settlement with 
every application. Notice the note reads, ‘Value received,’ and 
it is of no value unless you get the contract.” 

He signed the note. 

“Now,” I said, “this binds the bargain between you and me, 
and your insurance will go into effect just as quickly as the doc¬ 
tor says you can pass the examination.” 

This completed the sixth hook. 

He was examined immediately and passed. The policy was is¬ 
sued as applied for and is on our books at the present time. 

Never Show Confusion. By William Alexander. 

The shrewd agent is constantly on the watch for surprises. 
Consequently, he is never surprised. If you were a lawyer de¬ 
fending your client in court, and if the opposing counsel should 
unexpectedly spring an embarrassing question, or a damaging 

111 


SALES METHODS 


charge, you would be at a great disadvantage if you manifested 
embarrassment or offered a weak defense. If, on the other 
hand, you should say, “That is a very important point. I am 
greatly obliged to the learned counsel on the other side for bring¬ 
ing it up. But before considering it I wish to continue my argu¬ 
ment, in order that the jury may not lose the thread of my dis¬ 
course.” This would have a double advantage; it would give 
you time to determine how best to meet this attack if renewed, 
and it might enable you to avoid meeting it at all, if later on 
the opposing counsel should forget to recur to it, or should con¬ 
clude that your serene attitude indicated that the point had less 
force than he had expected. 

You can follow the same tactics in canvassing. Mere excuses 
can thus be swept aside, and the consideration of serious objec¬ 
tions may be postponed, with the hope that they will not be 
reverted to again, or for the purpose of meeting them after you 
have had time to think and after your prospect has been won 
over to your way of thinking. 

Do Your Thinking Before the Interview. By Darby A. Day. 

Haven’t you frequently left a prospect’s office, and upon going 
over your remarks, as well as his, come to the conclusion that 
if you had prepared your talk and fortified yourself with answers 
in probable objections you would have secured his application? 
You know he should have insurance; in fact, he admits it, but 
3 ^our unpreparedness made him the master of the interview, in¬ 
stead of you. 

The best rule for thinking on your feet, for thinking quickly 
in a business talk, is, strangely enough, not to think at all dur¬ 
ing the process. Do your thinking beforehand. Sometimes 
people call upon you and talk so fluently, so much to the point, 
and answer so cleverly every objection that you make, with such 
instant power of thought, that you are astonished at their ability 
in quick thinking. 

The salesman who seems so quick-witted, who meets all your 
arguments so cleverly, is not thinking quickly on his feet. He 
did his thinking beforehand; he planned and prepared his talk, 
and he even planned and prepared your questions, and your 
objections, and then prepared his answers and explanations, he 
prepared the entire conversation between you and him. So far 

112 


MEETING OBJECTIONS 


as you are concerned, the conversation is original. To him, it 
is something anticipated and previously prepared for. 

You have something to sell every time you call on your client 
or prospect, whether it be services, advice, or solicitation for 
insurance. At any rate, the impression you make will determine 
the success of your future relations. Sit down then quietly at 
your desk and think out, and even write down, every question, 
every objection that your customers or clients might make. Do 
not omit any question whatever. Think out, and write down, 
favorable questions and unfavorable questions, wise questions 
and foolish questions, easy questions and difficult questions. 
Omit nothing. Anticipate everything that could possibly be 
asked. 

Sit down and write out the characteristics of the different 
types of persons whom you are likely to meet. Write out the 
favorable questions that are likely to be asked by every different 
type of person. Write out the unfavorable questions that are 
likely to be asked by every different type of person. Write out 
the objections that are likely to be made by every different type 
of person. Summarize the most frequent objections. Prepare 
especially detailed answers to the most frequent objections. 

“I cannot afford it.” Show him that he cannot afford to be 
without insurance. 

“I don’t need it now.” “I may buy later,” and many others 
that you are familiar with, you will be surprised how you will 
increase your volume by preparing your answers to objections. 

When the Prospect Thinks I Am Overloading Him. By W. 
J. Olive. 

If a man tells me that I am trying to overload him, that if I 
sell him any more life insurance I will burden him, I say, “That 
is just what I do not want to do. How foolish I would be to 
sell you too much. As it stands now you are on my books as 
a policyholder, and you are my friend. I value your friend¬ 
ship highly. While you feel kindly toward me you are going to 
be a booster for me. You will put in a good word whenever 
you can. You will think of me when life insurance is mentioned. 
If you want to buy any more life insurance I am quite sure that 
you will take it with me. You are one of my strong supporters. 
How foolish I would be to throw all this aside. If I should 
8 113 


SALES METHODS 


oversell you and burden you with payments you would always 
have a grudge against me and would feel that I had done you 
an injustice. I want to avoid that. I am asking you to take out 
more life insurance because I can show you why you need it, 
and why you really have less net protection for your family 
today than when I called on you the last time.” 

Only Three Things to Think About. By James F. Russell. 

The prospect usually says he would like to think it over. I 
have a stock answer for this, namely, that there are only three 
things the gentleman could possibly think about. 

First—Whether he can afford it. I then call his attention to 
the fact that in the beginning of the interview he had stated that 
he could and should save that much money, 

Second—Whether it is a good thing to do. I cite the number 
of people who carry insurance; the opinion of banks, big busi¬ 
ness men, colleges, the government on their attitude towards life 
insurance. 

Third—Whether this organization is able to live up to its obli¬ 
gations. I prove this by citing the assets, liabilities, etc. Then 
I tell him that there is not much use for figuring for any length 
of time on anything that is so generally admitted to be good, 
and at the best all he is buying is confidence in the man from 
whom he is making his purchase; that when he buys a pair of 
shoes, clothes, house, auto or whatnot, that all the thought in 
the world will not eliminate the fact that all he buys is confi¬ 
dence in the other fellow and that he should be able to make 
up his mind right there. 

During these last remarks I have produced an application and 
proceed to ask him the questions on it. When it is completed, I 
push my application and pen over to him and with my little 
finger point to the line for his signature and request him to sign 
as his name is written above. 

Of the objections a prospect makes, the main one is that he 
has all the insurance he can carry; more than he can pay for; 
that he can’t afford any more. How do I meet it? I don’t. I 
don't pay any attention to it. 

A great many agents make the mistake of wasting a lot of 
time in trying to beat down an objection that doesn’t exist. That 
is a stock answer that every man makes in trving to get rid of 

114 


MEETING OBJECTIONS 


the salesman. I go right ahead, never paving any attention to 
it. 

Another objection is that the man is single and doesn’t see any 
reason for carrying life insurance. I talk to him about the dis¬ 
ability clause; about providing him with an income in his old 
age. The majority of men have parents who have been put to 
a lot of expense in educating and bringing him up. Although 
his parents may be in good circumstances, I point out that they 
would have been in better circumstances had they not been put 
to the expense of bringing the child up and that although it may 
not be a matter of obligation, it does show on the son’s part 
that he has the proper spirit and desires to play fair. 

“Enough Insurance.” By Sidney A. Foster. 

The soliciting salesman should seek to ascertain at the very 
beginning of an interview any objection that is to be overcome. 
Soliciting is a profession. It is not a begging effort. Begging 
for business cheapens the occasion to the point of disgust. But 
when you firmly ask the subject what is his objection to increas¬ 
ing his present estate $10,000 (of course the salesman should if 
possible know in advance the financial ability of the prospect and 
be governed accordingly in the amount of the policy solicited), 
he is being asked a direct question he cannot well evade and you 
can force some direct answer. 

Never go into the presence of a prospect with fear of objec¬ 
tions. Lack of confidence in approach gives a psychological 
advantage to the prospect, as it creates instantly a negative men¬ 
tal impression in seven cases out of ten. The salesman must 
know within himself that he is offering a desirable, legitimate 
opportunity and has every reason to believe it should be accept¬ 
able by any prospect of sufficient financial and business capability 
as to deserve his call. “Hair splitting” should never worry the 
salesman; he should not be annoyed by it. What he has for sale 
is not cheap trumpery, for he is creating by contract the enlarg¬ 
ing of estate. No other salesman carries as valuable a line of 
goods, for life insurance has in all its functions merit beyond 
the life of the insured. 

“You say you have enough insurance estate; have you? What 
are you working and saving for? Perhaps it is because you 
enjoy working and saving? Then why not save more? You 

115 


SALES METHODS 


work and save because you wish to have a good estate at deatn. 
If you are worth to-day $1,000, or $100,000, and you take $1,000 
or $100,000 additional insurance on your life, you perhaps this 
year, or next year, but surely at some future year, you have in¬ 
creased your estate by as many more thousands of dollars as 
you have taken additional life insurance, therefore you have not 
all the insurance you should purchase, because you have not pro¬ 
vided all the estate you care to leave to your family. If you 
have, stop working and enjoy the luxuries of the rich. In what 
year were you born? What month and what date in the month? 
You say Jan. 5, 1881. Well, in three days you will be in your 
43rd year, because your life insurance age is dated from your 
nearest birthday; to-day you are but 40; if you take your insur¬ 
ance to-day, $10,000 will cost you about $15 less annually for the 
next 20 years than should you wait until July 5, this year. The 
additional saving would be $300, not counting interest.” 

Turning Objections Into Selling Suggestions. By John A. 

Stevenson. 

Do not handle objections as if they were obstacles to the sale. 
Objections indicate interest and should be welcomed. 

Do not raise objections that would not have been raised by the 
prospect. 

Get past every objection encountered, either by going through 
it or around it in plain sight of the prospect. 

An objection is probably due to the struggle between the heart 
and mind of the prospect. Go to the aid of the heart and help 
the prospect. Satisfy his mind that he should have insurance. 

Forestall possible objections if you can anticipate beforehand 
that such objections might be raised. Do not argue with the 
prospect about an objection. Answer it quickly, pleasantly and 
to the point. 

Develop and have ready for use good answers to the common 
objections usually raised. Answer objections promptly and 
swing back into the sales talk. 

Know the general causes of objections. 

Try not to become involved in answering objections until after 
you make the prospect want the insurance. 

Satisfy the objections which the prospect might have had in 
mind, but did not raise, because he disliked running the chance 

116 


MEETING OBJECTIONS 


ot getting into an argument with the salesman. This does not 
mean for you to mention the objection, but plan your sales talk, 
so that the answer to the objections is made. 

There are two classes of objections, the sincere and the insin¬ 
cere or excuses. The former only are real hinderance to buying. 

There are three methods of handling objections, the emphatic 
denial, the admission-but and the boomerang methods. 

Try to turn objections into selling suggestions. 

The Farmer’s Objection. By Carl A. Peterson. 

In any farming community where the land is valuable, the 
principal objection to life insurance on the part of farmers will 
usually be something like this: “Why, I do not need any life 
insurance. I have this farm. It is worth a lot of money. It 
is producing well. What do I need with $5,000 or $10,000 of life 
insurance? I am well fixed as it is. I am not going to spend 
any money paying for life insurance when my family would get 
this farm if I should die.” 

This might be all right, except for the fact that in all sections 
of Iowa and probably other states where the land has been going 
up, the farmers have seen their opportunity and bought up con¬ 
siderable adjoining land. Most of them had not had the cash 
with which to make an outright purchase, but have arranged to 
finance it through a mortgage. In other words, probably 90 per 
cent of the farms in any good, substantial farming community 
have mortgages on them. Whether or not a farm is mortgaged 
can be fould out in advance, but in Iowa it is almost a safe bet 
that any farm along the road has a mortgage on it. So I say 
to the farmer who tells me that he does not need life insurance: 
“Yes, this is one of the best farms in this section of the state. 
You need never be afraid that it will not supply the needs of 
your family. If you live for eight or ten years longer you will 
have your mortgage all paid off and own this land clear. But 
the big point is that you have not in your vest pocket a contract 
with the Almighty that says that you are going to be allowed to 
live until you do pay off the mortgage. You do not know what 
is going to happen. Neither does anybody else. If you should 
die as things stand now, you would leave your family instead of 
a fine producing farm, a lot of worries, trouble and expense. 
Your two boys are only eight or nine years old. Surely they 

117 


SALES METHODS 


could not go out into the field and work this land. *\our wife 
would have to hire a couple of hands to run the place. Do you 
think they would take care of things as well as you have?” 

Objections Answered. By Thomas J. Stewart. 

“/ must buy a new suit this month.” 

You can always buy a new suit of clothes, whenever you need 
it and you have the money, but you can’t buy life insurance, no 
matter how much money you’ve got, unless you are in. good 
health. 

“I will take insurance later.” 

A good time to get insured would be the day before you die. 
That may be to-morrow; better make sure of it to-day. 

‘77/ let you zcrite me up July 1 st.” 

All right, just sign this little guarantee that you will be alive 
and in sound health July 1st. 

“I can’t afford it this year.” 

Suppose you got a cut in your wages next Saturday of fifty 
cents per week, don’t you think you could get along somehow? 
Imagine the cut and sign right here. 

“I must pay off my mortgage first.” 

If you live you can pay off the mortgage and pay for the in¬ 
surance also. If you die, the insurance will take your place and 
pay off the mortgage, thus securing the home for the family free 
of incumbrance. 

“My friends will take care of my wife and children.” 

Do you think it fair to expect your friends to provide for your 
family when you would not do it yourself? What would you 
think of the man who would expect you to look after his family? 

“I prefer a savings-bank 

If you are sure you are going to live thirty years, and if you 
are sure you will deposit the premium in the bank every year at 
four per cent., and if you are sure nothing and nobody can ever 
induce you to pull your money out, you will have $1,000 sure 
enough. The life insurance bank is the biggest and best bank, 
and your bank account begins at the big end ($1,000) immediately. 

“It costs too much.” 

Roast beef, clothing, and house-rent all cost money, yet you 
must h^'e them. Life insurance is also a necessity and costs 
nothing; all your money comes back to you; it is not spent. 

US 


MEETING OBJECTIONS 


“/ can't afford it.” 

Rather say you can’t afford to do without it. The wife can’t 
step into your shoes, report at the factory Monday morning and 
earn your wages. When you stop, your wages stop. If it is hard 
for you to provide for the family, how do you expect the ‘‘little 
mother” can do it? 

“I.won't leave money for a second husband to spend.” 

Ninety out of every hundred widows get married because they 
have to. Had the first husband done his duty by them and left 
them a ten-year monthly income, they would not have to grab 
the first fellow that came along and looked like a meal-ticket. 

“/ have a good business and can provide for my family.” 

It is your brains and ability that makes your business a success, 
but when that brain is no longer behind the business and your 
hand is forever stilled in death, can your widow and orphans con¬ 
tinue the business successfully? Better invest a portion of your 
earnings in a monthly income policy. 

“Not now—later on.” 

Every edict of wisdom cries out for immediate action. Do not 
procrastinate. Delays are always dangerous. You are younger 
now than you ever will be, and the price of protection is less to¬ 
day than it ever will be again. You have everything to gain by 
immediate action, everything to lose by delay. 

Procrastination. By David Hattenbach. 

I called on a man and his wife, and tried my darndest to close 
the business, but I couldn’t. Their intentions were of the best. 
They promised to give me the insurance on my return from a 
trip. Accordingly, I called on them when I got back and asked 
for the husband. The wife spoke up and said: “Didn’t you know 
that my husband was dead? The day after you called he had an 
accident. He was riding on top of a load of hay when one of the 
bales slipped off, carrying him to the ground and, falling on top 
of him, killed him instantly.” Another instance of procrastina¬ 
tion. I had quite a talk with the widow and before I left the 
house secured her application for $5,000 and her son’s for $2,000. 

Story of the Wife Who Objected. By L. S. Mattison. 

He was the first man I ever talked life insurance to in my life 
it was the first application I ever wrote. I was a young boy then 

119 


SALES METHODS 


and my father was a merchant. He mapped out the route and 
loaned me the old gray horse to make the trip. That first man's 
name was D. C. I reached his home something like an hour be¬ 
fore dinner, and he was grinding out sorghum cake. I talked life 
insurance to him if I ever talked it to any one in this world, and 
had about reached a point of contact, so to speak, when the din¬ 
ner horn blew and Mr. C. invited me to dinner. I very readily 
and gladly accepted the invitation. 

When we sat down to the table a very freckle-faced, cross¬ 
eyed, homely woman was knitting at the head of the table. She 
wanted to know what my business was. I very readily told her 
and said that I was very proud of my vocation and that it was 
my first day out as an insurance man. In about three-quarters of 
a minute I was very sorry I told her, and had almost taken the 
pledge that I would quit then and there. She insulted me, or¬ 
dered me away from the table and out of the house, an invita¬ 
tion which I didn’t accept. I had gotten over with dinner. The 
more I talked the further I got away, and the nearer I got to 
being kicked out of that house. However, what took place under 
the big oak tree I don’t think it is necessary to tell. Mr. C. per¬ 
mitted me to write him an application of $1,000 life insurance on 
condition that his wife should know nothing about it. He re¬ 
quested that the premium notice should not be sent to his home 
address, as he didn’t want his wife to know about it. So he had 
the notice of his premium sent to another little town, to a man 
who carried D. C.’s account. That merchant was to settle the 
premium and to charge it to D. C.’s account. So I put the deal 
over on that basis. 

Two years after that application was written I went to see Mr. 
C. again. He had purchased the place which he had rented there¬ 
tofore. I met him away from his house. I dared not go in that 
direction,'much less to his house at that time. He said he had 
bought this place and mortgaged it to help pay for it. We talked 
insurance on the line of protecting his investment, with the result 
that I wrote him on the same condition—that his premium no¬ 
tices were not to come to his house but should be sent to Mr. B.^ 
who would pay the premium and charge the same to his account. 

That was two years after the first policy was written. And 
four years after the first policy was written I met him aeain. He 

120 


MEETING OBJECTIONS 


had lost his health and was unable to attend to his farm. He 
had spent all his money to regain his health, and one year later 
died. I hadn’t forgotten that first experience, so when the notice 
was received I asked that I might be permitted to go down and 
make up the proofs. I had a goose I wanted to pick. And I was 
permitted to go. 

I drove down to the country, knocked on the door, and this 
same individual who practically ran me away from the table came 
to the door. I asked for Mr. C. She said, “This is where Mr. C. 
used to live.” I said, “Where is Air. C. now?” She looked at me 
with one of those perpendicular faces and said, “He died last 
Wednesday,” “Oh, well, I am sorry; I wanted to see him a bit.” 
I asked her if he left her in good shape. “No,” she said; “he left 
me with eight children and a little farm with an $800 mortgage 
on it.” I said, “W’hat in the world are you going to do about 
this?” “Don’t know,” she said. She was in a bad fix. 

I saw a chance to reap the revenge so interesting to me. I 
got my revenge. But as I was going towards the door I said, “I 
have good news for you; you didn’t know it, but Mr. C. bought 
$2,000 life insurance. All you have to do is to fix up the proofs 
and you will have enough to pay off your mortgage and $1,200 in 
cash besides.” With that money she paid off the mortgagee and 
educated those children. 

The Sample Policy Excuse. By H. W. Gennerich. /• 

In dealing with writing big business, there are many factors 
that enter our work. The first one and to my mind the most ob¬ 
jectionable one, is the question of the sample policy faker. I 
mean by this that the man whom you are gradually getting the 
best of in your interview and who does not want to “fall for” 
the stuff you are handing out, says: “That’s all right, I like it; 
send me a sample policy.” 

The real object of that man is to terminate the interview, take 
the policy, give it to some of your competitors and then, when 
you call on him again, tell you he had changed his mind. If a 
man says to me, “Gennerich that is a fine proposition, send me a 
sample policy,” I say to him, “Not on your life. And in telling 
you the reason why I won’t give you a sample policy, I must il¬ 
lustrate it by telling a story. “Some day you are going to die; and 

121 


SALES METHODS 


when you die they will put you in one of those long pine boxes. 
Your friends and relatives will walk around the casket and some¬ 
body will say to your wife: ‘Did Mr. Jones carry much life in-, 
surance?’ and your wife, with tears streaming down her face and 
heart-broken, will say: ‘No but he had over a hundred thousand 
dollars’ worth of sample policies.’ I am not going to be the per¬ 
petrator of that kind of a crime, directly or indirectly.” 

The Balky Prospect. By a writer in Mutual Underwriter. 

Let the balky prospect talk. Don’t stifle his objections. When 
he begins to tell you why he is not insured, and that it would be 
useless to “consume your time” with him, give him rope. You 
must know what his objections are before you can overcome 
them. Most men who are different are ready to congratulate 
themselves, and to score for themselves credit marks for fairness* 
clearness of vision, consistency and firmness. 

When you refuse to hear this kind of man in his own commen¬ 
dation you have deprived yourself of needful information and 
pushed him further away. Don’t do this. It is only by learning 
WHY he objects that his objection may be overcome. When a 
man is giving you his objections to life insurance he is uncon¬ 
sciously pointing out the method by which his application may be 
secured. Shut off this source of information and you will go 
stumbling along in the dark. Let him talk. Let him shed all 
the light possible on the difficulties before you. 

Most Objections Are Only Excuses. By J. Stanley Edwards. 

Most objections to taking life insurance met by a salestnan in 
his canvass are not real objections at all, but are excuses. 

There can be no legitimate objections to life insurance any more 
than to air, water, food or sunshine. There may be greater need 
for insurance in some cases than in others or one time may be 
more propitious than another for one to take it—just as air, 
food or water. Its need is constant, its value is fixed by the un¬ 
certainty of human breath and heart beats. 

The best time to take it is when you can get it. That is now— 
wfien you seem to need it least. “An umbrella can be bought 
after it starts to rain but life insurance can’t be had at any price 
after your heart begins to skip its beats.” 

122 


MEETING OBJECTIONS 


The field man’s job is to dig beneath the surface objections he 
meets and find the real excuses, the real obstacles to his closing 
the sale. Nine times out of ten it is this—the unwillingness of 
the prospect to make a present sacrifice for a future gain. He 
wantes his good time now and his wife often agrees with him. It 
is the spirit of the age, to live for today; not to think ahead much 
farther than next Saturday night. 

Life insurance appeals most readily to the thinking minority. 
The unwilling or shallow thinking majority must be made to 
think temporarily of their distant future. 

The resourceful field man does this by jarring his prospect out 
of his accustomed mental attitude. He paints him a picture of 
his old age or the dependency of himself or his family, twenty 
years hence, and makes him see it. He overpowers, temporarily, 
the mental neglect of the future that is habitual with the average 
person. 

He shows the prospect the need for action now. He overcomes 
for the moment the fixed mental attitude of unwillingness to 
make a present sacrifice for a future gain by facts, by appeal to 
duty, to fear, to desire for gain or to whatever human motive 
seems most appealing. 

Someone has pointed out that the blockade to closing is usually 
made up of the following mental barriers—and do not expect 
them to be always mentioned by the prospect, they must be as¬ 
sumed by the field man. 

1. To pay a premium means self denial and self denial is not 
easy. 

2. Surplus ready money is not always on hand even with peo¬ 
ple of good incomes. 

3. Most people live from hand to mouth. It is against their 
mode of living to provide ahead. 

4. Most men think only of the present, future dangers do not 
impress them. 

5. It is common to exaggerate the importance of a present 
payment as compared with a future return. 

If the salesman can successfully combat these objections or 
excuses in the mind of the prospect most of the other objections 
will melt away or not be mentioned. 

123 




SALES METHODS 

An Objection No Reflection on the Salesman. By Dick 

Oliver. 

If he refuses to take the insurance, where is the harm? Who 
is injured? In what way are you disgraced? Certainly there is 
nothing to be ashamed of, any more than if you had tried to sell 
him a United States Government Bond, or some building in your 
town. Don't feel that a man's refusal to take insurance is a re¬ 
flection on you, or your company, or your business. And remem¬ 
ber this, nearly every man you come in contact with has the ex¬ 
cuse that he has all the obligations he can meet at this time, and 
that very nearly is true, except that a majority of those obliga¬ 
tions are expenditures. They are not methods by which he is 
saving money and accomplishing the results he wants to. No 
man living is fool enough not to know that expenses won't pay 
dividends, or provide for Mary and the babies in case of his 
death. I would say to such a man: “Sure, Mr. Smith, I know 
you are loaded up with obligations, but obligations, such as ex¬ 
penses for presumed necessities, etc., will not save money for 
Mary and the babies, and won't take care of you in old age. You 
may owe this man and that man, you may have prepared to meet 
expenses of different kinds for your family, but you know in 
your own heart that my proposition is for the benefit of you in 
your old age, or for your family in case of your premature death, 
or for both of you in case of disability. I am trying to get you 
to quit spending your money and save some. 


124 


CHAPTER VI 


MEETING COMPETITION 

Backfire of Knocking. By W. J. Olive. 

Sometimes I find that I have stayed away from a member so 
long that he has in the meantime taken out a contract with some 
other company. In cases of that kind, I always avoid saying, 
“Well, that is too bad. I wish you could have talked to me. I 
could have saved you money. I could have sold you better in¬ 
surance." Nothing is accomplished by telling a policyholder any¬ 
thing of that kind. It plants doubt in his mind. It disturbs him. 
He feels that he has made a mistake, and is uncertain what to 
do. He begins to get a little doubtful about all life insurance. 
He wonders which company has the best contract after all. 
Long ago I learned that there is nothing that gets me closer to 
members than approving of what they have done if they have 
taken out a contract with some other organization. 

A Friend in the Business. By John H. Marsching. 

Give your friend part of your insurance if you wish to, but 
not all. Why? Because if at some time in the future you should 
need to make a loan on your contract, would you want your 
friend to know that you are hard up? Would it not be much 
better to deal with a professional life insurance salesman whose 
business relations with you are based on service, not friendship? 

Competitive Solicitation. By Charles W. Scovel. 

Cut out the competitive solicitation. It is dead wrong. When 
an insurance salesman pries into a prospect where several others 
are already after him, he not only creates a bad impression on 
the prospect and fails to get the application himself, but loses it 
to his competitor. Life insurance selling is a business and should 
be handled in a business method. Dry goods salesmen are not 
going to spend much time with a customer when they know he 
is fully stocked up. They are not going to worry much about 
him while a half dozen other salesmen are occupying his time. 
An insurance man can’t sell a man insurance when that man has 

125 


SALES METHODS 


all he can carry. He will hardly sell any to a man whom an¬ 
other salesman just left by knocking the competitor’s policy and 
boosting his own. The prospect becomes leery of the entire 
game and takes out no insurance. 

Devote your time to soliciting the uninsured or those whom 
you know are not carrying a sufficient amount of insurance. 
Less than 10% of the people in this country have their lives 
insured. The remainder makes a fertile field for the wide awake 
insurance solicitor. While this small number of our people are 
insured against certain death 80% of the people have their prop¬ 
erty insured against fire. If it’s good to protect one’s property 
it is good to have protection for members of the family. That’s 
a business proposition pure and simple and if followed up will 
get insurance policies. 

Quit pretending that life insurance is a “bargain affair” and 
sell it because the prospective customer needs it. Find an unin¬ 
sured man and sell him on the basis of protection against death, 
protection against old age and protection against business calam¬ 
ities. 

Don’t talk lump sums. Ask him how much his family would 
need at the end of every month to live comfortably if he 
“dropped off.” When you have that answer talk protection of 
that kind. Usually you will get the business. Get after those 
who are not carrying a sufficient amount of insurance. Leave 
off the hell, death and the grave stuff and show him it’s a busi¬ 
ness proposition to carry more. If you don’t land his additional 
application some other man will and you will have done a service 
to his dependents and himself. 

The “Actuarial” Salesman. By Stewart Anderson. 

We know a salesman who has one of the finest arsenals of life 
insurance weaponry we have ever seen. It is in the form of a 
big steel filing case, with elaborate card indexes. He can pull 
out on the instant any single datum that you may wish, and with 
almost equal quickness can load you with a multitude of data — 
company histories, glories, scandals, rates, dividends, ratios, set¬ 
tlement options, rates of interest returns, big policyholders, mor¬ 
talities, and heaven knows what else. He is a fighting man. But 
his small registry of clients is out of all proportion to his large 
arsenal. In every case he scenteth a battle from afar. He gir- 

126 


MEETING COMPETITION 


deth up his loins. His eyes shoot fire. His tongue slippeth its 
ieash. He yearneth for an affray. He kicketh up such a dust 
of prospective conflict that his prospect soon begins to discover 
combatants and to imagine a profit for himself in their strife. 
And in the long run this warrior, armed all cap-a-pie, is licked 
again and again, and bitterly biteth the sod. Neither experience 
nor admonition teach or restrain him, and his filing case grows 
larger as the years harden his obduracy. 

Occasionally the salesman must compete. But in most cases 
persuasion is his only task. Don’t be looking for men in armor 
to‘tilt with you, and then you will seldom encounter them. If 
you flood your prospect’s mind with competitive stuff, quite 
naturally he will turn to your competitors. Forget them, and 
concentrate on him alone, with your well-arranged life insurance 
story, and your chance of winning will be as fifty to one com¬ 
pared with your chance if you come gluttonous of blows and 
gore. From the long experience of mankind could be quoted a 
volume of proverbs declarative of the advantage the soft tongue 
has over the battling tongue. Don’t fight!—persuade! 

And don’t try to make of your prospect a graduate actuary— 
that were to smother him, asphyxiate him, and kill him. You 
are an oral advertiser,—the expert advertiser uses the language 
of those whom he would persuade to become buyers; speaks 
with their tongues; sees with their eyes; pictures their needs. 

Honest Man Has Few Competitors. By S. J. Rosenblatt. 

I don’t do any straight canvassing, because I think it is the 
wrong principle to operate on. In order to get the business and 
get it from the right kind of people, the insurance man has 
to establish confidence. If a man has confidence in me, he will 
buy from me. He will listen to what I have to say and accept 
the recommendations that I have to offer. If he never saw me 
before, he will not deal with me so readily. He wants to know 
something about me before he pays me any money. So in 
cultivating prospects and getting their confidence, the life insur¬ 
ance man is not wasting time, but is really going through the 
first stages of the sale. After the prospect knows him and be¬ 
lieves in him, he will be ready to accept what he has to offer 
in the way of advice and suggestions. An honest man has few 
competitors. I don’t believe in getting into discussions with 

127 


SALES METHODS 


people about dividends, character of the company, surplus, 
liberality of the contract or anything of the kind. I probably 
have these objections offered to me as often as any one else, 
but if I allowed myself to talk about them, I would never write 
any business. If a man asks me what the dividends are going 
to be, I tell them that I don’t know what they are going to be 
and that the company does not know what they are going to be, 
or anybody else, and the only way to find out is to buy a policy 
and then see what dividend is paid each year. I believe in 
wasting no time at all on the first interview, but concentrate 
on getting the examination so that the next time I call I can 
show the contract. The contract is what I have to sell and when 
I am able to show my goods, I can get the results. 

Must You Tear Down Houses? By Homer J. Hale. 

Our success in the future will depend to a large extent upon 
how thoroughly we get the habit of boosting each other’s busi¬ 
ness instead of knocking. If I contemplate building a house on a 
certain street, is it necessary for me first to have every other 
house on the street torn down before I can begin? This is a 
crude illustration perhaps. But a good many of us have fallen 
into a careless way of canvassing; unconsciously knocking every 
other company in the business in order to impress upon our client 
the superior advantages of the company we represent. If we 
could but see into the prospect’s mind we could often read there 
a new born idea something like this: If this man wasn’t afraid 
of these other companies which he says are so far inferior to his 
own, he would not spend so much valuable time talking about 
them. I saw a motto in an office not long ago which read: 

“If your competitor talks about you put him on your pay-roll.” 

Become a life insurance salesman by study, thought and prac¬ 
tice. Do contructive work, not destructive. Get hold and boost 
and never knock, not even to get back at some fellow who has 
knocked you. 

When you retaliate with the same tactics which somebody else 
has employed in trying to put you down, you sink to his level, 
and you will find to your chagrin that you cannot prove to your 
prospect that your methods are not just as deplorable as his. 

128 


MEETING COMPETITION' 


Salesman Personifies the Company. By E. J. Dunn. 

Most people, who take life insurance, know very little about 
the subject. 1 his is true of financial giants, professional men, 
farmers, laborers. They have practically no information about 
the different life insurance companies. Men use their own judge¬ 
ment or seek expert advice in the purchase of real estate, stocks 
and bonds, or merchandise. Usually they do neither when they 
buy life insurance. 

People buy their life insurance, as a rule, because of their con¬ 
fidence in the salesman. Review your own experience. How 
many times has your applicant taken your word absolutely as to 
the terms of your policy and the standing of your company? How 
often has an applicant asked you for a sample policy, either for 
personal examination or for submission to some other person for 
examination? How many times in all your experience has an 
applicant asked you for official statistical information or for ref¬ 
erences as to the standing of your company? How many of your 
members have been secured in actual and severe competition? 

To your applicants you have personified and represented the 
policy that you sold them. To them you have likewise personi¬ 
fied and represented your company. Is it not so? Since this is 
so every element of character that inspires confidence in you 
makes for you greater success. If you gain the confidence of 
the people you will be able to sell life insurance. 

Connect with a company of established standing and stability. 
Avoid all others. Sell a policy that you know will stand all tests. 
Don't handle any other kind. Then develop a personality that 
inspires and retains confidence. The insuring public will become 
your domain and the limit of your success will be marked only by 
your capacity for work. 

Arguing Against Estimated Dividends. By Harold Pearce. 

When I saw that brief of the Blank Company I knew what i 
was up against, and I knew that if I was going to figure alto¬ 
gether for actual results on dividents as compared with the Blank 
Company, I was a “gone gossler,” therefore, having had one of 
those briefs in my hands before, I know what was on the bottom 
of it. Under the law they are required to state, after giving all 
of these figures about their net cost, and so forth, that the above 
9 129 


SALES METHODS 


figures are neither estimates nor guarantees, so I said to this 
gentleman, “Mr. Hutchinson, I want to call your attention right 
here to a few facts which I know you will be interested in. In 
the first place a life insurance salesman naturally wants to present 
his proposition in the most attractive possible way. Dividends, of 
course, are a factor in life insurance. The life insurance sales¬ 
man is inclined to emphasize the very best dividend he can point 
out. In fact he is talking to you about future dividends, that is 
what he wants to impress you with, the possibility of future divi¬ 
dends. Now perhaps you gentlemen can tell me what your divi¬ 
dends are going to be ten years hence.” 

One of them said, “No, we can’t.” I said, “And no life insur¬ 
ance man living can tell you what his dividends are going to be 
ten years hence. It depends entirely upon conditions. The fact 
of the business is that this statement you have up here says these 
figures are neither estimates nor guarantees. They are just 
figures, aren’t they? Now, of course, if you gentlemen want esti¬ 
mates, bear in mind that estimates depend a whole lot upon the 
salesman’s imagination, and if you want estimates I am there. 1 
will estimate that my dividends will be just five times as big as 
any of the figures you have here.” So this gentleman said, “Well, 
I guess there really is not so much in dividends anyway.” I said, 
“The actual facts of the business are that our companies are all 
operating on the same basis, that is our leading companies. We 
are all affected by the same conditions. We are subjected to the 
same contingencies, for example, here was our influenza epi¬ 
demic, our company suffered by that, likewise every life insurance 
company in existence 

“The law prescribes the class of securities in which we can in¬ 
vest the policyholder’s money. Therefore our interest rate has 
got to be substantially the same in the long run, consequently it 
resolves itself right down to this. It is not going to make any 
great difference in which one of half a dozen of the leading com¬ 
panies you are going to place this insurance. I would like to have 
the honor of placing this insurance.” 

Doesn’t Know Competitor’s Weak Points. By A. Gordon 

Ramsay. 

I have called upon a prospect with another agent and lost the 
case in competition. My agent has, sometimes tactfully and 

130 


MEETING COMPETITION 


sometimes untactfully, intimated that he couldn’t expect to get 
the business if I didn’t attack the weak points of my competitor’s 
company. I would decline absolutely to discuss the other com¬ 
pany. I would know nothing of its weak points, and even pay an 
occasional compliment to a strong point, and I will not admit that 
I lost more cases than others, in competition. The broad stand 
cannot fail to make a favorable impression. 

We consistently advise our men to avoid reference to technical 
details and figures, which are alike confusing to the prospect and 
unfair to a competitor. 

In all branches of our work, broad ideas of co-operation applj 
to-day and we find all companies welcoming constructive criti¬ 
cism of policy, of advertising, of agents’ methods, etc., from 
whatever the source. 

*»• 

Forget All But Your Own Wares. By E. B. Houghton. 

A great deal has been said about system, but it is not an im¬ 
portant part of our work if we are lacking in the one essential 
thing that goes to make a system work. You can define the 
thing of which I am to speak as “Loyalty” or “Concentration.” 
Once having decided to cast your lot with a certain organization 
and a certain agency there is only one thing to do, forget every 
other company and every other agency that there is doing busi¬ 
ness. If you are at all successful you will have offers from other 
field managers. The chances are that the general agency seeking 
your service will be unable to do as much for you as the man 
with whom you are connected. If you continue to be successful, 
the next thing that will throw you off the “production route” 
will be the managership “bug.” Do not start out to seek a man¬ 
agership. 

The reason so many men fail in our business is because they 
lack moral fibre; they haven’t the necessary stick-to-it-iveness to 
push the thing through to a real success. They worry about other 
men and their success and do not pay enough attention to their 
own business. They wish and wish and wish. Decide now to 
be a “booster.” If the other fellow does something worth while 
“pat him on the back and tell him about it.” Decide now that 
you can do it too, don’t sit down and wish that you had done it 
or could do it. Be a booster, for the other fellow and for your¬ 
self. We are associated with the best men in our business, we 


SALES METHODS 


are glad that all of our colleagues in the work are successful, we 
know that we are being used fairly and that we can get as far 
in the business world in our present connection as in any other. 
Knowing that it pays to be a “booster” and with this “loyalty” 
to our associates a fixed thing in our breasts there can be no 
question of our making a success of our work in a systematic 
way. 

Intelligent Competition. By Charles W. Scovel. 

If you hear that a man is in the market for life insurance you 
are likely to think that there is an opening. It is—an opening 
to waste time, and to get into a lot of trouble, and do harm. 
When a prospect tells you that he has been dickering with Smith, 
of such and such a company, and lias almost decided to take out 
a policy with him, tell him that it is good and fine. Tell him 
that Smith is a good fellow and represents an excellent company. 
Do not go into the case in competition. Do not upset what the 
other agent has done and disturb a prospect’s ideas on life in¬ 
surance. Let the other policy be placed, and then a month or so 
later show him what life insurance means in the terms of month¬ 
ly income. Let him see that the little $5,000 policy that he lias 
purchased is fine so far as it goes, but that is does not go very 
far. Do not mimimize what he has purchased. Show him that 
it is better than the agent ever told him it was. Simply make 
him see life insurance in the terms of protection and he will 
buy more from you than he has bought from the other agent. 

No Competition in 90% of the Cases. By Paul M. Ray. 

When I started in the life insurance business I was suspicious 
of the other fellow, I’m sorry to say. I thought he was a crook! 
But I soon found that he was a man like myself; that he had 
the same love for his family that I had for mine; and that he 
said the same ideals as I. Competition is largely a bug bear. In 
Cincinnati the life underwriters association gathered statistics 
that proved that in 90 per cent, of the cases written there wasn’t 
the slightest competition. Yet we kick about Ue competition 
among the 10 per cent, of cases! 

A friend of mine in Chicago learned his lesson in competition. 
He called on a man who was a prospect for $50,000. In fact, the 
man had already applied to a competitor. But my friend secured 

132 


MEETING COMPETITION 


the man’s application too, with the understanding that after the 
two policies were issued, the prospect would compare the two 
point by point, and take the one he liked best. 

\ou know the result of course. First one agent would con¬ 
vince the prospect that his policy was best; then the other would 
be promised “a last word.” And the matter dragged for days 
and days. Then the man was killed in an automobile accident. 
And neither agent could pay the widow a nickel. 

1 he salesman’s motto should be as my friend’s is now; if the 
other man is giving satisfaction to the prospect, I’ll step out, and 
go after the man who is not being reached. 

We are all in the insurance business to make a living, but I 
hope we have a higher ideal than just a living. We must have 
the purpose of a great surgeon whose desire is to advance the 
human race. 

There should be competition in records—I’ll try to be a better 
man than you. Your record will stimulate me. But we will 
work together for our mutual interests, and associations of life 
insurance men are doing a wonderful work in co-ordinating the 
interests of the great fraternity of life insurance men. 

Honorable Competition. By J. E. Matthews. 

Let us know more of the ethics of insurance. If we meet a 
man who carries his insurance in some other company, that is 
scarcely any reason why we should take a seat in the scorner’s 
chair of hurl the cynic’s ban. Believe me it never pays to leave 
a man disgruntled with his policy. When we knock that policy 
we are simply doing our utmost and doing it very effectively to 
shake that man’s confidence in our own business, and in our¬ 
selves. This latter part is the fact that we generally overlook. 
You know as a rule the wisest man we have in the insurance 
business is the man of two weeks’ or two months’ experience, the 
man who makes himself ridiculous by telling prospects how much 
better policy he could have given them than those they already 
carry. 

Let me give an illustration of insurance ethics. Two years ago 
a competitor of mine was filling out an application for $2,000 for 
a man living in the Neepawa district. Before it was completed 
the man happened to mention that he had carried a policy with a 
company for three years, but had been compelled to let is lapse. 

133 


SALES METHODS 


He gave as one reason that the premiums coming due in the 
spring never suited him. My competitor, to make a long story 
short, went no further with his application, but made that man 
dig up his policy. He calculated the arrears with interest, two 
premiums I think it was. He added a broken premium cover¬ 
ing until the fall, and the following morning that competitor 
walked into my office and handed me a cheque for the full 
amount. 

What do you think would be the impression made upon that 
man’s mind? What would be his attitude toward insurance after 
an incident of that nature? I want to say here that there are 
many insurance men who try to conduct business along those 
lines. „ • 


\ 


134 


CHAPTER VII 


CLOSING 

Mechanics of the Close. By C. J. Rockwell. 

Many salesmen are victims of auto-suggestion. They are 
afraid to advise the man as to that which is for his best interest. 
Much of the fear is due to their lack of preparation. A sale is 
nothing more than an agreement to accept a proposal, other¬ 
wise it is merely a purchase and the salesman an ordertaker. 

When you get him to agree that your proposal is worthwhile 
and that you have shown him the means by which he can reap 
its benefits, the greater part of the sale is made. 

Ask questions that he can answer in the affirmative. “Don’t 
you think this is a good plan?” Isn’t this the best way to do 
it?” “She should have $100 a month, shouldn’t she?” and so 
on. Never ask a question to which he can reply in the negative. 

After he has given you the affirmative answers you have 
evoked, insist that the contract will do these things. There is 
nothing further to do than have him attach his signature to the 
application. If he refuses, bear in mind that when he says no, 
he has to screw up his courage to do so. 

One of the best urges on a man to sign is to remind him it 
requires but a drop of ink to make a pen write and that the 
drop of ink may mean protection for his wife for the rest of 
her life. 

Ever stand beside the hammock as she lay within the net, 
your hand on the rope, longing to get in with her and yet not 
daring? You got closer and closer but, like a flash she said: 
“Oh, I want to sing you that new song” and jumped out. Did 
you shove your hat down over your eyes and hop off the porch? 
You did not. You went into the music room with her, turned 
the pages for her, slipped your arm around her dainty waist 
an d—yes, you did! Kissed her, didn’t you? You closed the sale 
without saying a word. 

Taking “Yes” for Granted. By L. C. Klein. 

There are probably a thousand ways to close. I haven’t had 

135 


SALES METHODS 


two men in the past year say they would take life insurance. 
I don't care whether they say it or not 

I am firmly convinced in my mind first that the prospect is 
going to take it, and in going ahead and talking that conviction 
makes my arguments sound stronger. \\ hen the time comes 
for closing, I proceed just as if he had said, “Go ahead and fix 
it up, Klein.” 

I take everything for granted, no ifs and ands about it. Then 
I go after the signature, remembering it means a matter of ten 
or fifteen thousand dollars for a family if he dies. 

Additional Policy. By B. R. Plotts. 

I deliver a man’s contract and say, “Well, your contract 
came and I looked it over and there is one thing wrong with it.” 

Invariably he says, “What is wrong with it?” In fact, the 
applicant never says anything else. 

“Well, the one thing I find wrong with it is that it is not 
large enough, and without any obligation on your part at all 
1 ordered another policy of the same size.” And there have 
been very few cases where I have not delivered it. 

Let the Prospect Have It. By Oliver Thurman. 

A man wanted insurance, for a definite purpose, so earnest!}', 
that he let it be known generally. Every salesman in the city 
tried with all their wiles to sell him. One believing himself on 
“the inside,” secured a promise from the man that he would 
hold off until he should prepare an elaborate display of con¬ 
tracts, rates, standing, etc., whereby the prospect would know 
exactly, from figures, what he ought to buy. When the sales¬ 
man visited the prospect on the date set with his arms loaded 
with literature and data, the man announced that he had already 
bought his insurance, and finally told the name of the salesman, 
who had sold it. 

The disappointed salesman sought out the other, and asked 
him “how he did it” against the competition of the fraternity 
of the entire city. The answer is a lesson in directness. “Well,” 
said this veteran, “I went down there one day with my secretary. 
We walked into his office. I said: ‘Mr. Jones, I understand 
you want to buy some life insurance.’ He said he did. I ex¬ 
cused myself a minute, went to the telephone and called the 

136 


CLOSING 


doctor and told him to come right over to this man’s office. I 
went back, asked a few intimate questions, the answers to which 
tlie secretary wrote down. I handed the man the application 
and he signed it, the doctor came in and made the examination, 
and it was all over. 

' I thought that you fellows had been bothering this man long 
enough and it was time to let him have what he wanted.” 

Draw on Your Reserve Power. By Charles L. Sykes. 

Many salesmen are the weakest at this juncture. They lack 
nerve. 1 hey are fearless up to this point and then they faint. 
Here it is necessary to dominate the situation. A prospect may 
make some inquiry as to how the premium could be paid. This 
is the opening opportunity for the salesman and he should come 
right back at him with, “How do you want to pay it? How 
much time do you desire?” Then go right ahead and ask him 
the questions on the application blank. It is the duty of the 
solicitor to make it easy for the prospect to be closed. Often 
times he gives his consent without even knowing it. Tell a 
man that there are three things that may happen to him so far 
as his life insurance policy is concerned. He may die. He may 
quit. He may live. Whatever happens his life insurance will 
be a splendid investment. If he dies his family will certainly 
have a fine yield on the money spent. If he quits he can get a 
good surrender value. If lie lives his life insurance will pro¬ 
vide for him in his old age. It is a good proposition at any 
time. The knowledge of one’s business comes in at this time 
to good effect. Like an athlete, when a salesman gets into a 
tight place, he should draw on his reserve power and bring 
forth additional clinching arguments. The power of suggestion 
can be used to good effect. Logic and reason have been used 
and now at the close there is something required to do the 
trick. Salesmen should find some way to fill the prospect’s 
mind so he will act. When desire reaches the highest point 
then is the time to start to close. 

“Pie ase Give Me Your Check.” By Stewart Anderson. 

Here is a suggestion that may help in some cases to obtain 
the first premium when the application is signed. If you say, 
“And now please give me your check,” up comes the average 

137 


SALES METHODS 



man’s guard—he doesn’t like to part with his money until the 
goods are delivered. But if you say, “I suppose you wish this 
insurance to be in force from today—immediately,” and he says 
“Yes,” then you can add without offense, “Please give me your 
check.” If he demurs, in a moment you have shown him that 
he receives something of value for the immediate payment; 
and if he still does not wish to give his check, you will have 
given him no grounds for offense. In brief, a blunt, “Give me 
your check,” may offend, and consequently fail; whereas the 
offer of immediate protection in return for immediate payment 
is reasonable and cannot offend, and consequently is more likely 
to succeed. 

Workingman’s Family. By R. M. Westheimer. 

I do not know that I ever use a closing argument; I just 
keep on talking, and let the man ask me questions until I see he 
is ready to go to the doctor. And, for instance, Air. Jones tells 
me he cannot get up the money to pay the premium on his 
contract, that it is a fighting proposition for him to get along 
and take care of his family on the money he is earning, and 
then I will say: “Well, Mr. Jones, if you and your family 
cannot get along on the money you are making now, how will 
your family get along without your earning power?” I do not 
use any particular closing arguments, but, as I said, I wanted 
the poor fellow’s family taken care of. 

Request the Prospect to Tear Up the Application. By H. L. 

B. Skinner. 

I have used this plan with several, and have found that it 
works in the majority of cases: In talking to a man, if he 
refuses to buy, I will say. “Mr. Smith, if you should take this 
insurance, to whom would you have it made?” He says, “To 
my wife.” And her name—yes, it is May, but you need not 
write that down. I will say, “You don’t mind my writing it in 
on this application?” “No, if you want to, go ahead.” “Air. 

Smith, your name is -?” He answers, “W. H. Smith,” 

and so on and on until by that time he has answered all the 
questions and we have come down to that fatal place—to the 
dotted line that we all talk so much about, and I will say, “Air. 
Smith, this application is ready; you cannot afford to turn it 

138 



CLOSING 


down* Will you sign it?” He answers, ‘‘No, I cannot sign it.” 
I plead with him a while longer and he still refuses to sign; 
I then hand him the application and tell him to tear it up, but 
he cannot do it. 

When Not to Look Him in the Eye. By C. A. Shaw. 

I never look a man in the eye when I say, “Put your name on 
that line please,” for looking at him might make him think 
that I was in doubt about his being ready to write his name. 

To coax a man to sign an application is fatal, but I do think 
that there is no other word in the English language so forceful, 
so sub-consciously persuasive, as the word “regret.” I doubt 
if the word can be overworked; it can be used in a multitude 
of ways—for instance, “I feel certain that you will never regret 
this step, this piece of business that you are contemplating.” 
Or, “If you should be taken away, your family will never regret 
this day's work of yours.” Again, “If you should be alive 
twenty years from now, and the chances are you will be, you 
will never regret that I came to see you today.” Or, “If you 
take an unnecessary chance and delay closing this matter until 
you are in bad health, you will surely regret it.” - 

Strategy in Closing. By George A. Rathbun. 

Sometimes I spread my papers about on the prospect’s table 
while I am developing my canvass. After I have made my 
appeal, if he does not seem to be coming my way, I gather up 
my papers, put them in my wallet, put my wallet in my pocket, 
and prepare to leave. The result is that the prospect will relax, 
for he will conclude that the interview is at an end. At that 
point I say something like this: “I have given you good reasons 
for taking this contract. You have agreed with me on many 
points. But I have failed to convince you. Will you please tell 
me, for my guidance in conducting my business in future, just 
why I have not convinced you—just what has influenced your 
mind against taking this insurance?” 

Then the prospect, thinking that I have given him up, will 
usually give his reasons for not taking the insurance. And 
in giving me this information he will be very likely to reveal 
weak spots in his understanding of the situation. If so, I 

139 


SALES METHODS 


instantly pounce upon those weak points and turn them to my 
advantage in closing the canvass. 

I estimate that by this method I have closed at least fifty 
per cent of such cases before leaving. The psychology of this 
method is that a man will be off guard and will open the door 
if he thinks he has worsted you. Then he will tell you frankly 
what he has carefully concealed up to that time. Then you will 
have the information necessary to guide you in getting him to 
follow your advice. 

Never Say, “Sign Here.” By T. P. Regan. 

I never talk insurance to a man without a pencil in evidence, 
as I am a great believer in noting on a scratch pad the rates 
and indemnities, and in calling his attention to the fact that 
“this protection will only cost you so much per day—(the 
average man will throw aw r ay more money than the amount 
mentioned) or so much per week,” not forgetting, of course, 
the accumulations that are allowed for annual payments. A 
goodly portion of my business is written on the annual premium 
basis. 

After my sales talk is completed I close by saying, “Isn’t that 
a fine proposition?” Invariably he will say “Yes.” I then tear 
off the little page of figures and hand them to the prospect, 
stating, “Now when your contract is received if these figures 
are not exactly as I have stated it won’t cost 3 r ou a cent.” I 
then reach for a loose application in my inside pocket, correctly 
and conveniently folded. I do not believe in rummaging through 
my wallet for an application, as it excites the prospect and gives 
him a chance to frame excuses. I first write his age, weight, 
height, then his full name, and after completing the application, 
in a “taken-for-granted manner,” I say, “Kindly write your 
full name on the lower line.” I never say sign, as some people 
do not like that word. 

Closing at First Interview. By Parke N. Musser. 

I have written only four cases that have taken more than 
one interview. Now, why have I written just four cases out¬ 
side of the first interview? 

We all know, if we go back to the first two weeks we were 
in the business, that we did not have the confidence or stick- 

140 


CLOSING 


to-it-tiveness that we have to-day. We were timid and were 
afraid of pushing a man too hard for fear we would lose him. 
Many new men ease up too quickly and commence to apologize 
to their prospect and say, “Well, Mr. Jones, I know you are 
busy, but you think this over and I will stop and see you later/’ 

How many of us commence talking with a prospect with the 
thought in our minds that we are doing him a favor, if we sell 
him, and that we must sell him now? How many of us start 
in on a man knowing that we are going to sell him right now? 
Very few! 

Our business is the highest class business there is and second 
to none in the world. Why should we be at all timed from 
the time we start in on our man until we finish? I have had 
more than one man get peeved at me, blamed good and peeved, 
but I have written them time and time again. Why have I 

and how could I? I’ll tell you why. When I call upon a 

man and he is busy and stops to talk with me, I surely don’t 

owe him an apology for taking his time for his time surely is 

not worth any more than mine; and you have got to make 
your man feel that he is the one who is taking up your time, 
and he is the one, if any, to apologize. Make your man feel 
that he is under obligations to you and that you are bigger 
than he. You have to take the whip hand and hold it from 
start to finish. If you lose it you have lost your man, for there 
isn’t one time in ten after you have lost it that you can get 
back on top and write him. As long as you have your man 
whipped you are on top, and once he gets on top you are 
whipped. 

Nerve, perseverance and patience play the biggest part in the 
battle to close at the first interview. You have got to have 
nerve and patience and all kinds of it, and if you don’t have it 
your prospect will, and I’ll prove it. He will talk to you for 
two hours if you make him and he doesn’t feel at all bad about 
having the nerve to take up your time, but you commence to 
get worried and you commence to ease up if you have taken 
two hours of his time. Of course, two hours is entirely un¬ 
necessary unless it is an extraordinary case. Twenty or thirty 
minutes is a lot of time. You have to make your prospect think 
faster than he ever did before. 

I never write an application without collecting the annual 

141 


SALES METHODS 


rate with it unless I am working with a sub-agent who gets 
cold feet when I commence on the settlement. The easiest thing 
in the whole insurance business for me is collecting the annual 
amount with the application. 

The Affirmative Mood. By L. F. Henderson. 

A sale is entirely a mental transaction and the payment of a 
sum of money is but the exterior indication of that the sale is 
complete. All sales should and do move through the four stages 
of attracting attention on the part of the prospective buyer, arous¬ 
ing his interest, producing a desire to buy and finally bringing 
about a decision to act. 

It is good salesmanship to know when your prospect passes 
from one stage to the next, so that no further time or argument 
be used upon it but the redoubled energy devoted to the remain¬ 
ing features of the sale until the signature appears upon the dot¬ 
ted line. During the canvass an old and successful agent has 
found much advantage in securing from the prospect affirmative 
answers to direct questions. This gets the prospect into a natur¬ 
ally favorable frame of mind and makes it easier to answer yes 
to the vital question when it follows at the opportune moment. 

EXAMPLES. 

“You understand this, don’t you, Mr. Prospect?”—Answer, 
“Yes.” 

“This is perfectly clear to you, isn’t it, Mr. Prospect?”— 
Answer, “Yes.” 

“That’s a nice feature now, isn’t it, Mr. Prospect?”—Answer, 
“Yes.” 

“You like that idea, don't you, Mr. Prospect?”—Answer, “Yes.” 

“You are satisfied our company is all right, aren’t you, Mr. 
Prospect?”—Answer, “Yes.” 

“You’d really like to have that contract, wouldn’t 3 r ou, Mr. 
Prospect?”—Answer, “Yes.” Etc., etc. 

This is what is meant by “getting the prospect in an affirmative 
mood.” It’s making it easy—and helping him—to say “yes” at 
the more critical moment. It is eliminating the negative from 
his system. 

Get the habit of doing this, and note the improved results. 

142 



CLOSING 


The Third Period. By B. F. Fine. 

It occurs to me that closing is divided into three separate and 
distinct periods, and they commence with the time of the ap¬ 
proach. You don’t get any further unless you impress your man. 
If you impress your man you are going to interest him. When 
you interest him you create a desire for the policy, and that is 
the time to close. 

Convincing Ring Comes from Mental Attitude. By R. P. 

Burns. 

I have found that one of my weak points has been to allow my 
canvass to take the form of a polite lecture at a Sunday school 
convention, instead of having the fire of enthusiasm and that con¬ 
vincing force about it. It is a good idea to be your own critic— 
go over each case and determine, if possible, why you succeeded 
or failed. A common mistake is that our arguments and illustra¬ 
tions are too general, too much of a hit or miss talk. After a 
successful canvass, one night, an agent who was with me, said, 
“That was the best canvass I ever heard you give, it was right to 
the point/’ My reply was, “You are responsible for that. In 
this case you gave me all the conditions in his business and family 
affairs, and I could shape my arguments accordingly. In most 
cases, we dash along the road and suddenly turn into the yard 
and I have time only to learn his name.” It is mighty important 
to make our arguments fit his case. 

Another of my weak points has been to let down the pressure 
at or near the closing point, or perhaps let my steering wheel 
wabble, so I lost control of the trend of the canvass. At this 
point, of all places, it takes concentration boiled down. 

I have found that when I get into my system that feeling that I 
am really going to write my man, I shape my arguments more 
forcefully, and my words have a more convincing ring. The 
mental attitude does have a great deal of bearing on the result. 

When “No” Closes a Case. By J. J. B. 

Many times prospects have asked if the company would do 
this or that for them. Instead of saying, “Perhaps they would,” 
or “I will try to get them to do it,” I simply answer “No,” and, 
believe me, this “No” has closed many cases for me, because the 

143 


SALES METHODS 


applicant was trying to see if I would promise something impos¬ 
sible under the pressure of trying to get his signature. 

When to Close. By H. G. Royer. 

A good many salesmen worry needlessly about when to close. 
They have a fixed idea that there is a “psychological moment for 
closing’’ and in their fear of missing that moment, they weaken 
their whole canvass 

Undoubtedly in every canvass there is one moment most de¬ 
sirable for trying to close, but it isn’t the only good moment and 
if you let it go by, you haven’t damaged yourself beyond repair 
nor will you necessarily lose out if you try to close too soon. In 
fact, a pretty safe policy to adopt is to make a tryout close early 
in your canvass. 

Maybe you remember watching your mother doing the ironing. 
If so, you remember how she tried out her irons, a wet finger and 
a deft touch. If the iron spluttered she went ahead and used it, 
if it didn’t splutter, she put it back on the stove for more heat. 

A try-out close is just that kind of a test to see how hot the 
prospect is for a real hard closing effort. It’s a sort of “feint” 
or “false close” and if it shows the prospect to be still too cold 
for closing, you “put him back on the stove” of your regular 
canvass again. 

Don’t give up your prospect just because he refuses to sign an 
application the minute you try to close with him. But don’t 
make a bore of your persistency although we want you to be per¬ 
sistent. Apply it in such a manner that your prospect will not 
look upon it as persistency. This in itself will kill his interest 
quicker than anything else. 

You must make him keep his interest in your proposition, but 
do it in such a way that he will think the interest is spontaneous. 
And as long as interest remains alive you are safe in sticking 
around. 

You have watched a wood fire as it burns. As long as it has 
some unburned fuel to feed on you can poke it up and get more 
flame, but when the fuel is exhausted you must either put on 
more wood or quit poking, and it is the same with an interview. 

If there is a spark of interest left in the prospect and a bit 
of selling-fuel for it to feed on, poke it up and try to make heat 
enough for a close. But when all the selling-points you have 

144 


CLOSING 


heaped on are exhausted and the flame of interest dies down, 
either bring up some fresh fuel or quit; don’t poke at a dead fire. 
There are too many live prospects to work on to make it worth 
while wasting time trying to revive dead ones. 


Wrap Them Up. By E. C. Endlong. 

“Will you wear them or shall I wrap them up for you? 0 

One of our collectors—a shoe merchant—tells me that those 
magic words have closed more sales for him than any other 
scheme he has ever worked. 

Sprung at just the right moment, the wobbly customer gives in 
and lets the salesman decide for him. He wants the shoes but 
he hates to say “yes” and is ashamed to say “no.” 

Many an insurance application has been closed by silently hand¬ 
ing the prospect the pencil and saying quietly, “Sign right here, 
Mr. Jones,” or by writing out the receipt for the first payment as 
if confident that the decision has been reached. 

It would be silly to claim that this method always succeeds but 
the worst you can get is a decision against you. 

Volumes have been written on the subject of closing applica¬ 
tions, but it goes without saying that more good prospects have 
been lost by too much talking after the proper time for closing 
has come, than by over-confidence. 

Down in the bottom of his heart every man believes in dis¬ 
ability insurance and wants it. He hates to admit it; dislikes to 
be wheeled into buying; fears that he may be “stung” or inveigled 
into signing something he does not fully understand, and Heaven 
knows that some of the documents that have been drawn up for 
the signatures of the unwary are worthy of the devil himself, or 
his Imperial Majesty, the Emperor of Germany. 

These things you must overcome. There is not a paragraph in 
any policy we offer that is intended to mislead or deceive the 
most innocent purchaser. Any policy we sell is subject to return 

and refund of the unearned premium. 

Talk your proposition frankly, honestly, earnestly, respectfully. 

Learn to close promptly and confidently. Many people are like 
the man in the shoe store; you must help them decide. 

10 145 


SALES METHODS 


Last but not least—get the money—or at least enough to make 
it a real sale; otherwise you may have to sell the policy again 
when you deliver it. 

Heart, Not Mind, Controls Desire. By A. J. Quigley. 

The lack of understanding here of a basic principle robs the 
insurance man of many a sale. He fails to realize that the heart, 
not the mind, controls desire. No prospect was ever reasoned 
into buying. His emotions first must be reached in order to make 
him desire your policy, and after his desires are keen enough, 
thej’- are going to be fulfilled even sometimes against the dictates 
of his mind. A successful salesman made it a principle to switch 
as soon as possible from the mind to the emotions because he 
said he never could be sure how much mind a man had, but he 
was sure that every man had a heart. While there is a vast dif¬ 
ference in the minds of men, there is after all fundamentally little 
difference in their hearts or emotions, as those go straight back 
to inborn instincts. These instincts are three: 

(1) Self-preservation—life, food, clothing, rest, ease, warmth. 

(2) Self-propagation—instincts of sex, and the protection of 
family. 

(3) Self-protection—instincts of possession, superiority, serv¬ 
ice to others, service to country and altruism. 

Appeal to the instincts involved, remove from his mind the 
obstacles that are preventing action, and then instinct compels 
immediate action if opportunity is given! Think of it. If op¬ 
portunity is given. Many a time you have your man right at the 
place where his instincts say do, and you fail to give him the op¬ 
portunity. You talk right past the point, when all you need to 
do is to say “Sign here.” 

In insurance, the obstacles that may be in the way are: 

(1) Physical disability—this may or may not be a permanent 
obstacle. 

(2) Financial—he may be unable to pay for more insurance. 

(3) Fully covered—he may think he has enough. 

(4) Conflicting desires—he may want other things more. 

Here let me refer to Barney Pearson’s excellent paper on the 

selling process. As most of you know, his steps are answers 
to the questions: 


146 


CLOSING 


(a) What is it? 

(.b) Do I need it? 

(c) What service will it render? 

(d) Can I buy it? 

(e) Why buy now? 

His main appeal is to the instinct of possession—buying prop¬ 
erty and all that it can mean in terms of self-preservation, etc. 
His idea is to keep away from the coffin entirely if you can, but 
in any event to keep away until the end when he answers the 
question of “Why buy now ?” where the instinct of preservation 
of family is appealed to. Charles Scovel largely reverses the 
order: his presentation being an appeal first to the “preserva¬ 
tion of family” idea. But whatever the appeal, remember that 
you are working on the instincts to persuade the heart, not the 
mind. 


Choking Off the Prospect. By G. K. Burns. 

The salesman had awakened the interest of his prospect and 
seemed to be making headway, but then the prospect began to in¬ 
terrupt and the salesman kept saying, “Just a moment, I’ll take 
up that point with you.” When finally the salesman had talked 
himself out he found there was “nothing doing.” The manager 
called the next day to see what the matter was. The prospect 
told him he had been convinced the day before and had tried to 
tell the salesman so, but had finally got tired of being choked 
off. The manager closed the case at once. 

Reasons for Cash With the Application. By T. Price 
Thomas. 

Effect upon the applicant. 

(1) Hastens the medical examination. 

(2) Has no opportunity to feel unkindly toward the salesman or 
himself. 

(3) Appreciates this as a business of the highest order. 

(4) Is less likely to lapse his policy, having a higher regard for 
it. 

(5) Is impressed with the serious nature of life insurance and 

147 


SALES METHODS 


(6) Is impressed with the idea that the field man desires to - give 

(1) Enlarges its usefulness by increasing the business. 

(2) Decreases expenses and thus increases the services rendered, 
real service. 

Effect upon the company. 

(3) Changes “new” business rapidly into “old.” 

(4) Improves the selection of business. 

(5) Cuts down cancellations. 

Effect upon the salesman . 

(1) Increases his self confidence and helps to drive away the 
"Devil of Fear.” 

(2) Decreases his worry. 

(3) Saves his time. 

(4) Makes amendments for increased lines easier. 

(5) Prevents possible switching of business by other fieM men. 

(6) Increases his business and friends. 

(7) Saves the re-selling of policies. 

Effect upon the public. 

(1) Establishes a reputation for the salesman in the community, 
which causes a favorable comment to be passed upon his 
work. 

(2) Prepaid business influences other immediate business through 
the personal cheques of prominent men. 

(3) Makes enthusiastic policy holders who readily endorse the 
salesman and the company among their friends. 

When to Close and How. By C. H. Hamilton. 

In our work we must know two things: First, when to close; 
second, how to close. The first, “when,” is largely a matter oi 
intuition. We must sense it. This is the “psychological mo¬ 
ment.”—the time to act—the time to quit talking—the time to 
give the prospect an opportunity to buy; for his “desire” is now 
at white heat and his will is ready to act. The second, “how,” 
is largely a matter of tact and must depend upon conditions. As 
a rule you can close the case by getting decision on a minor point. 
Do this by asking tactful questions. Try out some of these: 

1. If you should take this insurance now, about how much 
would you take. 


148 


CLOSING 


2. Is there any good reason why you snould longer deprive 
your wife and children of this protection? 

3. Do you believe you can pass a good medical examination? 
Any family history of tuberculosis or cancer? 

4 . What time this afternoon would be the most convenient 
for the doctor to look you over? (Don’t wait for him to answer, 
but continue)—five-thirty or six o’clock? 

5. Would you rather go to the doctor’s office or have him 
come here? 

6. Shall we write it for $5,000 or $10,000? 

7 . What is your full name? Your wife’s full name? Yoitr 
date of birth? 


149 


CHAPTER VIII 


SELLING WHOLE-LIFE PROTECTION 

Ordinary Life Fits Any Man’s Insurance Needs. By J. Elliott 
Hall. 

For ten years I burned the midnight oil studying the special 
privileges contained in life insurance contracts and figuring out 
the various combinations and options of settlement in my own 
company. The special privileges are the heart of any life insur¬ 
ance contract. Ask the average salesman which he would rather 
have taken out of his own life insurance contract, the nonfor¬ 
feiture feature or the special privileges, and 99 out of 100 would 
say, “Take out the special privileges.” They regard the non¬ 
forfeiture clause as of vital importance. The biggest things in 
a life insurance contract to-day from the standpoint of the man 
selling insurance are the special privileges contained in every 
contract issued by every company. 

When you know the many ways that a contract may be settled, 
you know just exaetty what you can do for the man you are 
trying to sell. You know that you can take an ordinary life 
contract in any company and make it fit any man’s life insurance 
needs. The man who understands the special privileges in a 
life insurance contract knows that ordinary life is a great deal 
more than an ordinary life policy as usually considered. It is 
an old age pension, an educational fund, a cash surplus and a 
monthly income if the agent only knows enough to make it all 
these things. A man who has an ordinary life contract does 
not have to buy monthly income insurance or any other particular 
kind of insurance in order to get the financial arrangement for 
his beneficiary that he wants. It is all in the ordinary life con¬ 
tract if the special privileges and settlement options are properly 
exercised. They can be properly exercised only when the sales¬ 
man who sells the business understands them. 

150 


SELLING WHOLE-LIFE PROTECTION 


“Does Life Insurance Carry You?” By R. W. Stevens. 

That’s the way to put it. 

There used to be an old question asked of men by their fellows 
and by life insurance solicitors—“Do you carry life insurance?” 

But that question is out of date. 

Nobody carries life insurance; the thing is an impossibility, 
for insurance won’t be in the position of being carried. It is 
no burden on any man’s back. It is an automotive vehicle that 
carries everybody who invests in it. 

But let’s not juggle with words—what do we mean when we 
say that life insurance “carries” the man who buys it? 

To begin with there is something that every decent man feels 
with regard to the future of wife and children that is actually a 
load on his mind and on his head—a load that cripples his effi¬ 
ciency in other things; that either makes him reckless in his 
expenditures, because he sees no way of meeting adequately this 
problem of the future welfare of his family, or that makes him 
miserly and unhappy for the same reason. This load life insur¬ 
ance assumes and carries in such a way as to absolutely relieve 
the man of his burden. It starts him out every day carefree in 
reference to future obligations in case of his sudden death or 
serious illness. 

Again, life insurance carries you into a first-rate habit which 
is hard otherwise to form, viz., a habit of systematic saving. 

“Yes, but,” you say, “a man must carry life insurance before 
it can carry him.” This might be true if there were not so many 
additional things which are intensely personal, in which life in¬ 
surance actually carries the individual who invests in it. For 
instance, a life insurance contract carries you to the door of the 
hank and gives you a welcome with the president when you ask 
him for a business loan, and you would find, if you could explore 
the back of his mind, that that life insurance contract has carried 
you very much farther into his good graces concerning that 
financial transaction than you could have imagined. 

Again, life insurance carries you into the position of a sizable 
estate just as soon as the first premium is paid. This is a good 
big argument in favor of the man who invests. 

Run Down the Cost; Run Up the Benefit. By D. C. Mac- 
Ewen. 

The street fakir says: “Ladies and gentlemen, I am not here 

151 


SALES METHODS 


tonight to sell you anything. I am merely going to introduce to 
you a wonderful remedy for cold, coughs, grip, blood-disorders, 
and nervous diseases. This medicine has cured sickness of forty- 
five years’ standing, and when all other remedies have failed. 

“I have a few small bottles which I shall pass out to you to¬ 
night, and I am not going to ask you $5, nor $4, nor $3, nor $2, 
nor $1, nor even 99 cents, nor 50 cents. But I tell you what 1 
am going to do, ladies and gentlemen. Listen: I am going to 
give you this wonderful little remed}', to each lady or gentleman 
in the audience who passes me up the small sum of 25 cents— 
two bits—one quarter. Never until tonight has this wonderful 
medicine been sold for less than $5.” 

While the methods of our friend, the “street fakir,” cannot be 
adopted by the insurance salesman yet a good pointer may be 
derived therefrom. After listening to the medicine seller’s har¬ 
angue, listening to him run down from $5.00 to 25 cents, and 
listening to him belittle that 25 cents, you commence to believe 
that a “two-bit” piece is about as valuable as a cancelled two- 
cent stamp. The tightest tight-wad in the crowd passes up his 
quarter and really believes that the fakir is doing him a favor by 
accepting it. It is all in the way the medicine man presents his 
proposition, in the accent he puts on it, in its effect on the ear and 
on the mind or, to use a hackneyed expression, it is a matter of 
“psychology.” 

The same applies when the insurance salesman is presenting 
his figures. In his case, however, the psychological effect must 
be upward rather than downward. It must create an impression 
of magnitude rather than of littleness. The figures must sound 
their mightiest; they must be accented in such a way as to give 
their greatest effect. One salesman tells his prospect: “Mr. 
Jones, I am going to so arrange your affairs that in the event of 
your death your estate, over and above everything you may now 
have, will be increased to the extent of $10,000.” He mumbles 
this over in a monotonous tone and those good round, hard, pov¬ 
erty-killing dollars create about as much impression on the pros¬ 
pect as if an equal number of walnuts had been mentioned. The 
other agent goes at it like our street fakir. He emphasizes his 
amounts; he makes five dollars sound like five hundred; ho 
rolls his figures over his tongue as if loath to part with them 

152 


SELLING WHOLE-LIFE PROTECTION 


When they finally do leave, they rush out between his lips in a 
veritable golden stream. His little speech: “Mr. Jones, I am go¬ 
ing to so arrange your affairs that in event of your death your 
estate, over and above everything you may now have, will be in¬ 
creased to the extent of ten thousand dollars/’ makes that ten 
thousand sound like a million. 

P- S. W hen talking premium, reverse the above rule. 

Good Old Argument. By J. M. Andrews. 

I have one old argument that I possibly use more in the selling 
of life insurance than all others put together. In fact, I am very 
partial to it. It is that eighty-five men out of every hundred at 
the age of fifty are worth less than a thousand dollars. 

I call the prospect’s attention to the fact that if they make a 
success in life from a financial standpoint they must do that in 
the productive years, and if they do succeed from a financial 
standpoint the paying of the life insurance premium is of no con¬ 
sequence. On the other hand, if they should have reverses and 
misfortunes the money they have saved by means of life insur¬ 
ance will tide them over. 

My First Insurance Lesson. By Albert Goldie. 

About twenty years ago, when a very young man, I was travel¬ 
ing through China, and in my search for experience and knowl¬ 
edge I came one day upon the excution ground in the ancient city 
of Canton. The executioner, to whom my guide introduced me, 
regretted that I had arrived too late to see the day’s executions, 
to which the headless bodies which were strewn carelessly around 
the narrow yard bore tragic witness. 

“It is unfortunate,” said the guide, “but if you would like to 
witness the skill of the executioner it can be arranged. There 
are no more criminals awaiting execution, but I can soon find a 
coolie who will take the place of one so that you may see how it 
is done. It will cost you fifty dollars.” 

The horror of the suggestion was for the moment lost in my 
wonder as to how the guide could so easily find a coolie who was 
willing to have his head chopped off. 

“There are thousands of coolies who would be willing to give 
their heads for fifty dollars,” explained the guide. “With fifty 
dollars a coolie could leave his father and mother in luxury for 

153 



SALES METHODS 


the rest of their lives, and that to a Chinese is the greatest of all 
things to be desired.’’ 

Surprised beyond measure, but not doubting the truth of the 
statement, knowing what I did of Chinese character, I left the 
place, but T took from there my first and best lesson in the great¬ 
ness of life insurance. 

An ignorant, downtrodden, miserable Chinese coolie would give 
his head so that those he loved might live in ease. And yet in 
the western world there were millions who refused to sacrifice 
a small portion of their income to accomplish the same purpose. 

I have often told this story to prospects when soliciting and 
have put to them this pertinent question: 

“If you do not carry adequate life insurance can you truth¬ 
fully say you are as good a man as that lowest Chinaman?” 

How Much Are You Worth? By Frank H. Sykes. 

“Why, I’m worth more dead than l am living,” laughingly re¬ 
marked a man to the life insurance agent. 

“How do you figure that?” he was asked. 

“Well, all I’m worth in the world today is about $10,000 in 
real estate. If I died to-morrow my family would get that and 
also $5,000 of life insurance from your company. So, you see. 
the family has $10,000 with me living and $15,000 with me dead.” 

“How much do you clear on that real estate?” 

“Oh, about 5 per cent, a year—it looks bigger in rents but is 
doesn’t figure out much more than that. I don’t get more than 
$500 a year out of it. Why do you ask?” 

“Well, you told me your salary is $3,000 a year. So, of course, 
that represents what you are worth alive—the income on your 
brains and physical stamina. It represents the income at 5 per 
cent, on $60,000. So you see you mean that you are worth $70,000 
alive to your family and only $15,000 dead.” 

“Oh, of course, I was fooling when I said that I was worth 
more dead than living.” 

“Yes,” said the life insurance man, “but so many people are in 
the habit of thinking of ‘what I am worth’ only in terms of 
property without keeping constantly in mind that the most 
valuable property their families own—from a cold financial stand¬ 
point—is those men themselves. In addition to the sorrow and 

154 


SELLING WHOLE-LIFE PROTECTION 


the spiritual loss, their death is like a fire in that a valuable 
plant is forever destroyed.” 

“Yes,” replied the citizen, “I guess that’s so. Really, a fellow 
ought to be thinking more about what he is really worth alive.” 

Not at all, not at all,” came back the indomitable agent. 
"His mind ought to be constantly figuring on how much less he 
is worth to his family when he is dead. Now take your own 
case on your own figures. You are worth $70,000 to your family 
today—$60,000 as yourself and $10,000 in real estate. If you die 
tomorrow, $60,000 of that disappears, but $5,000 is added by the 
payment of your life insurance policy. In other words, this 
family of yours changes from a $70,000 establishment to a 
$15,000 proposition. Now I maintain that that is a bad balance.” 

“Sounds like it is,” said his friend, “but death always un¬ 
balances things/ 

“Not for the family of the farseeing man. You could balance 
the whole proposition right now much more favorably by living- 
on $3,(300 a year instead of $3,500.” 

“I could! How?” 

“Why, just take the income from your real estate and put it 
into life insurance. You’re still young enough to get about 
$15,000 for that—$15,000 that would go to your family if you died 
tomorrow and would go to you if you outlived your ability to 
earn your salary.” 

Life Insurance Back of Every Farm Mortgage. By A. C. 

Larson. 

A mortgage is useful and advisable, but if it is unprotected it 
is a hazard to the mortgagor and his family. The farmer takes 
the chance that he will live to pay it off, but the fact remains that 
human life is uncertain and he may be called before he has ac¬ 
complished much. If he leaves but little cash assets, there is 
always the chance that his heirs will have to sacrifice their hold¬ 
ings to settle the estate. Cases of that kind are familiar to all. 

One of the best arguments and the most clever which I have 
read, is as follows: An agent, learning that a friend had bor¬ 
rowed several thousand dollars from a Farm Loan Company, 
went to see him and said: “John, I was in to see Judge Smith 
yesterday, and I just stopped by to tell you that under a supple¬ 
mental contract by which you agree to pay two and a half per 

155 


SALES METHODS 


cent, additional interest on your mortgage loan your notes will 
be cancelled and the mortgage released, in the event you die be¬ 
fore you have paid the notes in the regular order of their due 
date. They are scattered over five years, you know, and you 
may not be here on the due date of the first semi-annual interest 
payment. If I were you I would arrange for this supplemental 
contract without delay and play safe for the wife and babies.” 
‘T sure will,” said John. The rest was easy. 

Banks, mortgage and loan associations of various kinds adver¬ 
tise and in some cases insist that a life insurance policy be placed 
behind every loan. If we as life insurance salesmen will inform 
ourselves of the facts of the case, which may be had for the ask¬ 
ing, we will be in a position to render the farmer the service 
which he is entitled to. 

Proper Kind for the Farmer. By A. S. Elford. 

This subject takes me back 25 or 30 years ago to my boyhood 
days, and being one of eight farmer boys and having sold thou¬ 
sands to farmers, it does appeal to me. Let me say this: 

Forty-eight years ago, that is a long time, some bright agent 
ran across a young farmer in Minnesota and learned from him 
that there was a mortgage of $2,000 on his farm and persuaded 
him to take a $2,000 policy to cancel that mortgage if he should 
die. That farmer was the father of eight farmer boys. When 
his wife heard of that—that was my mother—she wept tears 
and wanted him to lapse the policy. Three years later the agent 
of another company wrote him $2,000 more and in the first year 
of my experience as a life insurance agent I wrote him $1,000 
more. In the meantime his boys had cost him a lot of money, 
the mortgage was there and the interest had to be paid and 
when my father left us 30 years ago lie left the mortgage and 
several debts, but these three little policies paid the mortgage and 
the debts, and at that time the mortgage was under foreclosure 
on that beautiful farm. By the payment of the debts—ana there 
was no other resources that the boys had then—my mother was 
free, and she lived to a ripe old age of 84 and the farm at that 
time could be sold for $50,000, after serving her for 30 years. 
That is constructive work on the part of the life insurance man. 

Life insurance for a farmer is different from that of a man 
in the city and there are two or three mistakes that the agents 

156 


SELLING WHOLE-LIFE PROTECTION 


make. First they overload a farmer, insure him for too much. 
Secondly, they do not write the farmer for the premiums coming 
due at the right time of the year. Thirdly, agents will take 
their notes for the year, which is an absolute crime, and they 
will write them in summer time and take their notes for the 
year; a year hence the farmer has no credit and his two pre¬ 
miums are due and there is nothing for him to do but to lapse 
the policy and get a judgment against him for the note taken 
in the first place. That kind of policy is criminal, you have 
discouraged all the bankers, and discouraged the next agent. 
The farmers’ premiums should always be made to come due at 
the time of the year when the harvest is cropped, and the note 
should never come due over a longer time than the first harvest 
after his insurance was written. I believe the average agent is 
like the old-fashioned school teacher that everybody looks up to 
and a man working in the farmers’ district should be trusted. 

157 


CHAPTER IX 


SELLING TWENTY-PAY LIFE 


Paying the Taxes on a $500 Income. By Frank H. Wheeler. 

An advantage to the salesman is that when he sells an income 
contract he will have placed a larger contract than he would 
have written had it been on one of the usual forms. Suppose 
we illustrate this: You are talking to a man thirty-five years 
old, in just fair circumstances, and you talk $10,000 and it sounds 
rather too large for him. Possibly he will talk to you about 
$5,000 ordinary life and you are obliged to quote him an annual 
deposit of $108.00 for the $5,000. But suppose instead you had 
asked him if he knew of anything in all the world more desirable 
and practicable than to provide for his family a certain fixed 
income in event of his untimely death. 

The value of this suggestion lies in the fact that he cannot 
answer except in the very manner that you desire him to and 
he truly cannot mention anything more desirable. The second 
point in your favor is that he is almost bound to ask questions 
because you are suggesting something which is new to him, and 
then he is very apt to swing around to the question of what it 
would cost. 

Now suppose you tell him quitely, but most earnestly, that you 
can provide an income of $500 yearly for his family for twenty 
years if he is willing to pay the taxes, and that if he lives to 
make the required deposits for say twenty years that you will 
return quite a large portion of even the taxes to him in cash. 
Don’t you think you would come near closing him? You point 
out to him that an income of $500 per year for twenty years 
amounts to $10,000 and all that is necessary for him to do is to 
pay two per cent on that amount. And when the sale is con¬ 
summated you have sold a premium of $200 instead of $108.00. 

An Estate on the Installment Plan. By J. N. Easley. 

The prospect is a close figurer, saves his money and prides 

158 


SELLING TWENTY-PAY LIFE 


himself on the fact that no life insurance man ever could show 
him that insurance is better than handling the money himself. 

"Mr. H-, if I can show you that as an estate-builder, life 

insurance is better saving, will you take a policy?” "Sure,” he 
said with a grin. "Very well,” I said, "we will figure on the 
basis of your being able to invest $344 a year (the premium on 
$10,000 20 Pay) at 6 per cent, simple interest.” He straightened 
up when I said "6 per cent.,” but said nothing. "Now,” said 
I, "we will figure out what S344 invested annually at 6 per cent, 
for twenty years will amount up to.” We figured it out together, 
and the result was $11,214.40. 

"Now,” said 1, "we will see what my insurance company will 
do for your $,344. Of course, you admit that in event of your 
early death the policy would beat the 6 per cent, investment, but 
you are going to live out that twenty years we are figuring on, 
so we won’t take the old man with the scythe into consideration 
at all for the twenty years. 

"At the end of twenty years you will have my company’s 
promise to pay your estate the sum of $12,620 immediately upon 
your death, which is $1,405.60 more than your little old 6 per 
cent, investments would have accumulated and you would have 
been spared the care, the worry, the work and the taxes that 
would have put gray hairs into your head and furrows in 
your face. 

"Just think of it! Your estate over 12 per cent, better off and 
you not worrying once during all those twenty years about your 
money. Can you beat it?” 

He scratched his head, went over all the figures I had made 
and finally admitted that I had knocked him out. 

I tried hard to write him for $10,000, but he figured that about 
$10 a month was all he could lay aside, so we compromised 
on $3,500. 

I sold him an estate on the instalment plan. That was what 
he was interested in. 


159 



CHAPTER X 


SELLING ACCIDENT AND THE DISABILITY FEATURE 

Appraising the Value of the Total Disability Clause. By L. 

K. Tooker. 

Who is actually competent to render an opinion relative to the 
value of the protection afforded by the present total and per¬ 
manent disability agreements? Actually there are, I believe, 
very few who are justified to render any negative statements 
as to its value. Do not the following classes eliminate the right 
of theroists to pass upon its value and nullify all their former 
statements against its use? 

1. —The salesman who, having sold the agreement in connec¬ 
tion with his life insurance program for some man, later sees 
the agreement come into effect; who, because he sold it, sees his 
client getting a monthly income, with his dependents protected 
against the loss of this income, should he die, knowing that even 
if he lives for many years that man and his family will still have 
the protection which the assured supplied while living. That 
salesman is competent to judge the value of the total and per¬ 
manent disability agreement. Who could convince him that it 
had no value to the insuring public? 

2. —The man who is being provided for as above because he 
possessed the agreement. He, too, is in a position to render 
true judgment as to its value. I defy anyone to convince him 
that it has no value. 

3. —The man who is totally and permanently disabled, and did 
not have this protection added to his life insurance, is another 
man competent to pass an opinion on its value. Explain just 
what he would have received had he had it, and get his opinion 
on its value. Talk to the wife or children that, in many cases, 
are forced to change their whole scale of living, oftentimes being 
forced to go out and work, in order to provide for the husband 
and father who, because of a twist of fate, cannot even provide 
for himself, let alone those who based all their future hopes on 
the continuation of his earning nower. 

O i. 

If we are to provide against the complete loss of a man’s abil- 

160 


SELLING ACCIDENT AND THE DISABILITY FEATURE 

ity to earn money through the causes of old age, or death, why 
not complete the job, why not take care of him when he is worse 
off than dead, because, in addition to having lost his ability to 
earn money, he is a burden to some one. 

Disabled Man a Burden. By James A. Fulton. 

One of the most important additions to the modern life in¬ 
surance contract, not only in its selling power but in its actual 
usefulness to the insured, is, in my judgment, the total and 
permanent disability clause. I remember when this feature was 
first introduced I thought of it, and probably spoke of it, as a 
frill. A fuller realization of the need that it answers has entirely 
changed my viewpoint. I think it is one of the most essential 
features of a life insurance contract. The man who is totally 
and permanently disabled is economically dead. His family is 
worse off than they would be if he were physically dead, because 
a dead man doesn’t have to be fed, clothed and taken care of. 
A disabled man does. The strongest arguments in favor of total 
and permanent disability insurance I know of are standing on 
the street corners of our cities and towns selling shoestrings 
and lead pencils. I do not think the charge of selfishness can 
be brought against the man who insists on this protection for 
himself. Picture yourself—blind, paralyzed, or disabled in any 
of the thousand and one other things that constitute total and 
permanent disability—condemned to a living death far worse 
than actual death—and then having heaped upon this already 
almost unbearable burden the horrors of poverty. 

Imagine sitting in the midst of your loved ones, seeing them 
in want and distress, sharing that want and distress with them, 
and knowing all the time that you could have prevented it all 
by the expenditure of a few dollars a year. It’s not a possibil¬ 
ity I want to confront when there is such a simple way to avoid 
it. It’s not a possibility I want to be responsible for my policy¬ 
holder and his family confronting if by a proper presentation I 
can protect them against it. 

The Leak in the Bucket. By Joseph Kenyon. 

The subject of lapses may seem old but it forms an ever¬ 
present problem with which we must contend. 

Lapses are due to many causes: 

11 161 


SALES METHODS 


Agents’ carelessness, principally. 

Claim dissatisfaction. And by the way, there should be the 
most intimate discussion between the claim department and the 
policy department as to the effect of the payment of claims on 
business production, agency continuation, etc. 

This subject of claim dissatisfaction is a very important one. 
There should be the utmost consideration shown by the claim 
department in all its claim settlements, having in mind the 
following important interests: 

Satisfaction to the claimant:—We find that this is not alto¬ 
gether caused by the amount paid, so much as by the manner in 
zcthick it is paid. There should be the utmost cordiality, whether 
expressed verbally or by letter, in the payment of claims. The 
cold, formal method of claim payments is out of date and 
antiquated, and should be relegated to the scrap heap. In, other 
words, there should be a living touch between the claim depart¬ 
ment in correspondence with claimants, so that they will realize 
that the corporation stands for a square deal and for nothing else. 

Consideration should also be given to the effect the payment of 
the claim will have on the continuance of an agency already es¬ 
tablished, and the production of new business in that vicinity. 
Satisfaction to the insurance commissioner, and above all, satis¬ 
faction to the home office. It is useless to save $5.00 in claims 
and lose $500 in premiums or in new business. This matter is so 
important that the heads of the policy department should meet 
regularly with the heads of the claim department and with the 
producing end of the business or agency supervisor, in order to 
confer as to the probable effect of claim payments on certain 
agencies. This is exceedingly important, as it affects the con¬ 
struction and development of the business. 

Another prolific cause of lapsation is carelessness of agents: 
in other words, in not becoming posted or educated in their own 
business. They presume things, rather than to reason them 
out. An agent should tell the truth to a policyholder respecting 
his policy. There is no reason to withhold information which is 
vital to the policyholder in the knowledge of his contract, and 
confidence established between the agent and the policyholder 
will do much towards reducing the lapse ratio. How does it 
come that some agents practically collect 100 % of their debits 

162 


SELLING ACCIDENT AND THE DISABILITY FEATURE 

while others, in just as good a territory, have a lapse ratio which 
is entirety unsatisfactory? Simply because one man is careful 
and the other is not. 

Another way of minimizing lapses is to educate policyholders 
to a correct value of their contract, so that they will realize that 
they have a good asset which must be taken care of. The best 
way to do this is to educate them to pay their premiums promptly 
when due, or before, and especially to have them pay in advance 
on their premiums. 

In this respect, let us say that Industrial agents should con¬ 
stantly endeavor to collect annual premiums. There is no reason 
at all why this should not be so in many instances, on account of 
the concessions given by companies to those paying advance 
premiums. 

A very successful method of inducing policyholders to pay 
annual premiums is to use the expression: “Let your money 
earn io%” This sounds big, and it is just as big as it sounds, 
because oftentimes the 10% increase on a claim on account of an 
annual premium represents the equivalent of the annual premium 
itself, so that the 10% argument is really below the real value of 
what a policyholder gets. 

Another very important method of keeping down lapses is to 
increase business; that is, an agent should everlastingly strive to 
produce more business each month than he lapses, otherwise his 
agency is a failure. A conscientious agent will do this. 

New Business When Claims Are Paid. By Fred J. Krazeise. 

Right after you find a claim is a just claim begins the activity 
of getting new business and assists you in a promptly paid 
claim. “Quick” and prompt action in all adjustments of claims 
matters makes the policyholder appreciate the “service” he is 
being given. A visit at the home will put you in touch with 
neighbors and friends. Gain their confidence. Call on the 
examining physician who is either a daily or weekly visitor at 
the home. Solicit him for accident and health insurance. In an 
accident claim there are several eye witnesses. Call on them 
and get the facts regarding the accident. Interest them in your 
company and solicit them at that time. 

When you are paying a claim or delivering the draft, this 

163 


SALES METHODS 


the time to get real busy. The policyholder feels himself obli¬ 
gated to extend himself in giving every assistance in getting 
applications. You can get an endorsement for an interview and 
in many instances he will arrange a meeting for you. I know 
a general agent who takes every claim voucher and begins a still 
hunt for the claimant, in his neighborhood, in his place of busi¬ 
ness, showing the draft all the time, talking his company, can¬ 
vassing for new business, until he finally delivers the draft. 

There will be no trouble in getting testimonial letters from 
policyholders who have been given such splendid service and are 
termed “satisfied policyholders.” In this way you keep yourself 
and the company before the people continually and they in return 
become your friends and boosters. If you have written business 
on prominent business men, such as heads of departments, man¬ 
agers, paymasters, timekeepers, etc., and pay claims on men like 
these, they will assist you in getting business on their employees 
as their testimonial goes a long way in closing business. The 
“bigger” the man in the business world, the more he can do for 
you when you pay a claim as he will help you to get the “little” 
man. 

Stopping Places Where the Close Can Be Made. By T. A. 

Keith. 

In doing some special work with salesmen, I have found the 
sales talk which follows quite effective. I have been writing 
from $200 to $750 in accident premiums a week, using these ar¬ 
guments with but slight variation. Of course there are a great 
many things for a salesman to do or not to do besides what he 
says. 

I find about 25 per cent, of the prospects I interview ready to 
close at the conclusion of the presentation of the contract and 
its various benefits. If it is necessary to go further, in order to 
keep him receptive and test him, I ask the prospect for a small 
piece of scratch paper. It is a change. If he gets it for me, it 
is the first move toward a close. He is assisting in the inter¬ 
view and is interested and receptive. If he does not move quickly, 
I have an old envelope always handy. 

“You are working for one principal reason, Mr. Blank,—IN¬ 
COME. 

“You use your income for food, clothing, shelter. You carry 

164 


SELLING ACCIDENT AND THE DISABILITY FEATURE 

life insurance.-’ Yes. Fire insurance? Yes. Miscellaneous ex¬ 
panses, savings and pleasure. 

As I cal! off each item, I sketch out a rough chart on paper. 

It takes your income to meet your obligations, does it not 
Mr. Blank? Yes. 

‘If it takes your income to meet your obligations, you cer¬ 
tainly would be unable to meet your obligations without your 
income.” (Pause a moment.) 

‘‘Suppose you were going to depend upon a building for the 
same income you now get through your own efforts. You would 
use the income in the same way and it would mean just as much 
to you. Would you insure the building? 

“Yes. 

“Then it is right to insure against accident as there were 40 
accidents to 1 fire in this country last year.” 

Many times a man is ready to close at this point. His ex¬ 
pression nearly always shows his interest. The salesman should 
not talk more than is needed nor stop before he has convinced 
his prospect. To test the prospect at this point, I usually pull 
out my application and watch his expression. If I think more 
reasons are needed, I take his thoughts back to the policy to 
build up indemnity compared to premium. 

“Of all the deaths in this country last year, Mr. Blank, every 
twelfth one was due to an accident. If this should happen to 
you, your present life insurance would be supplemented $10,000 
or $20,000. 

“Did you ever consider what your eyes, hands or feet are 
worth to you? They contribute to your earning power and have 
therefore a money value. The $10,000 or $20,000 you would re¬ 
ceive under this policy for such loss would not compensate you 
of course but you know what that indemnity would mean to you 
at such a time. 

“This weekly indemnity feature is quite important. 

“Twenty-five dollars per week would be $1,300 per year, which 
is 6 per cent, interest on $22,000 in round figures. 

“Suppose you should be disabled today and I came to you and 
said here are $22,000 worth of municipal bonds bearing interest 
at 6 per cent, you take them and every four weeks during your 
disability clip the coupons and collect $100. That would please 

105 


SALES METHODS 


you. Mr. Blank, this policy would become an estate the moment 
you were injured equal to the saving of $500 each year for over 
twenty years at 6 per cent, compound interest. It would cost you 
$25 per year.” 

At this point I pick up my pen and the application to test the 
prospect again. Many are ready to close at this point. If not I 
attempt to show the smallness of the premium. 

‘The cost is small. It will cost you less than 2 per cent, of 
your total income to insure it with this policy against accident.” 

At this point I use my hands to represent a pair of scales to 
weigh the policy and premium. Doing so seems to hold attention 
better. 

“Suppose you put $25 in one hand and carry your own in¬ 
surance. If you don’t meet with an accident during the year you 
have won and have $25, which you can use for another purpose. 
Put the policy on the other hand. Let it carry the risk for you. 
Then if an accident occurs and you are disabled seven days out 
of 365, an amount equal to your annual premium is returned to 
you. If you are disabled longer, the provisions I have explained 
will be carried out. While you are working you can afford to 
pay the premium. During your disability you could not afford to 
be without the policy. You are insuring the individual and 
cannot gain more than $25 at great risk. Weigh the policy and 
tiie premium. Which means more to you? The policy, of course.” 

If the prospect shows that he agrees with the last statement I 
stop. If not I make one final effort. 

“There were over 12,000,000 accidents in this country last 
year; 32,000 every day; 22 every minute. 

“About 400 accidents have happened since I came in here. 

“One life is lost as a result of accident every five minutes. 

“You are twice as liable to meet with accident as old age. 

“Roughly—24 per cent, of all our claims last year were for 
accidents around the home; 22 per cent, for accidents to pedes¬ 
trians, and 15 per cent, for automobile accidents. 

“Mr. Blank, would you insure me and assume the risk with 
this policy for a $25 premium? No. 

“Can your family afford to insure you for that premium? No. 

“We can do it. You, Mr. Blank, are the judge and jury. You 
are the one to decide. I believe you have already decided.” 

166 


SELLING ACCIDENT AND THE DISABILITY FEATURE 

Indemnity for Loss of Earning Power. By H. G. Royer. 

To what class of people is disability (accident and health) 
insurance a necessity? I he answer is: To all persons who 
cannot asTord to lose the value of working time. An individual 
whose working time is not valuable, and whose business gets 
along just as well without his attention as with it, is not an 
insurable risk for accident and health insurance. Among the 
many excuses for not carrying disability insurance are the fol¬ 
lowing : 

“I don’t need it; I have sufficient funds with which to take 
care of myself if I am disabled.’' 

“I can’t afford to pay for disability insurance.” 

“It costs too much.” 

“My health is excellent, and my occupation is such that there 
is no danger of my getting hurt.” 

“I was treated unfairly when I made claim against a certain 
company.” 

“My income is just the same when I am disabled.” 

When an individual believes that he cannot afford to pay the 
price of disability insurance, he is in the same class with the 
individual who believes that he cannot afford to pay the price of 
having the soles of his shoes repaired when they are worn 
through and when the streets are filled with slush. The price of 
treatment of pneumonia is much better than the price of a new 
pair of shoes, to say nothing of the cutting off of income while 
the pneumonia lasts. 

While a disability policy will not buy shoes for a man in good 
health, it will buy shoes for a sick man, and coal and bread and 
meat, and so the more sincere the belief of the individual that 
he cannot afford to pay for disability insurance, the more certain 
it is that he cannot afford to do without disability insurance. 

When an individual doesn’t “believe in” disability insurance he 
is just in the pupa stage of intelligence, ready for good impres¬ 
sions, a fine prospect for any philanthropically inclined insurance 
salesman. The only danger in explaining the value of disability 
insurance to such a person lies in the fact that when he is made 
to realize what a good thing disability insurance is he will be 
inclined to overinsure his time. 

As to the danger of one’s occupation, unless one lives in a cave 

167 


SALES METHODS 


beyond the bounds of civilization he can’t escape carpet tacks, 
falling step ladders, slippery sidewalks, reckless automobile 
drivers, train wrecks, falling bricks, cinders, pin scratches and 
waxed floors. 

Even caves are often inhabited by bats and bears, and it hasn't 
been many years since one insurance company paid a man’s wife 
$10,000 because the husband, on a hunting trip, struck at a bat, 
missed the bat and hit a sleeping bear on the nose. The same 
company not long ago paid a lot of money to certain people who 
were killed by or injured by something out of the clear sky—a 
“blimp!” This “Blimp” fell where the hazards of occupation 
were nil—where the zone of safety was ideal. What next! 

In the case of the man who feels he was treated unfairly by 
one insurance company (assuming for sake of argument that he 
was treated unfairly) it is probably due to his misunderstandings 
of his contract. Limited policies with their usual restrictions, 
sold at a low price by unscrupulous agents, frequently give rise 
to incidents of this nature. When the insured carries an unre¬ 
stricted accident and health policy and has honestly obtained the 
policy contract, there is no company or association that will not 
give the insured his just dues. If the public will play square 
with the company, it will find agreeable dealings with all accident 
and health companies, and, besides, even if one has been given 
short weight by one grocer, it is foolish to cease buying food. 

As to the individual whose income is “just the same when he is 
disabled,” he has forgotten that during his disability his expenses 
are much greater than under normal conditions. Doctor bills, 
expenses for nurse, hospital, medicine and many other items 
must occur when one is disabled. 

Experience shows that the average person lives close to his 
income and seldom makes preparation for expenses of this 
nature, which is all the more reason for his carrying the 
necessary protection. 

A disability contract is only a slip of paper, and has no in¬ 
trinsic value until the insured is disabled, and just as soon as his 
disability begins his policy contract starts paying dividends. No 
man wdio depends upon his earning power for his income should 
“kid” himself into the belief that he can afford to be without ail 
unrestricted accident and health policy. 

168 


SELLING ACCIDENT AND THE DISABILITY FEATURE 

Opening an Accident Solicitation. By E. J. Faulkner. 

It is, of course, impossible to lay down any prescribed rule 
relative to an opening statement. However, in approaching the 
prospect the first object is to attract his attention and to con¬ 
centrate his mind on your proposition. Some successful sales¬ 
men do, as a rule, start off with a very startling statement in 
regard to their policy in order to attract attention and then rely 
on holding the attention by a more or less detailed explanation of 
the statement they have made. 

The thing to be driven home to the prospect is, of course, the 
fact that he is in danger of accidental injury at all times. Im¬ 
press on him the dangers of his trade or occupation and especially 
the liability to accident that all persons are continually in danger 
of on the street and about the home. Since 42 per cent of all 
indemnity paid by accident companies in this country are for 
accidents happening outside of working hours, it is clear that 
dangers incidental to any particular occupation are of a second¬ 
ary consideration. 

While talking to the prospect, have your applications and pencil 
ready and fill in the application with as much information as you 
are able to get as you talk. Let there be no break in your talk, 
no stop to hunt for your application blanks or any material such 
as circular matter, that you want to use. 

After you are well started, in all probability the prospect will 
begin asking questions or telling you that he does not want the 
insurance. Never antagonize the prospect, but be ready to an¬ 
swer all of his questions and keep continually in the foreground 
the necessity of accident protection in his particular case. Show 
constantly the advantage to him that will be afforded by protec¬ 
tion in this Company. Withhold any information in regard to 
the cost until you have put your proposition and have informed 
him of the benefits payable in his particular case in the event of 
injury. Make the benefits to him look so good that the cost will 
appear a minor consideration. 

If the Salary Stops. By W. C. Harris. 

I approach my prospect with the consciousness that he cannot 
help but buy when once I have presented my proposition. The 

169 


SALES METHODS 


only enemy I have is procrastination and it is up to me to down 
him. 

Therefore when Mr. Prospect comes at me with, “No, I won't 
take it today—some other time—it costs too much now,” I come 
right back at him saying, “No, Mr. Prospect, this policy doesn’t 
cost too much today. It is the same price now as it was forty 
years ago; it hasn’t gone up with the rise of prices. It’s as big a 

bargain as ever. Tell me, where can you buy for $- (first 

premium) a security worth $10,000.00 right the minute you pay 
that first sum? The main incentive behind all your business ef¬ 
fort is to provide for your family. You are working mighty 
hard towards that end now. You care a whole lot how they are 
taken care of now. How about after your death? Aren’t you 
going to care as much for their welfare then? 

“Your family has absolutely no income aside from your salary. 
You are getting along comfortably on that. What would you do 
of that salary suddenly stopped? It could, you know. Say you 
were injured or became permanently ill, would this concern con¬ 
tinue paying you that salary? They might put you on a pension, 
but that's hoping too much. But this policy just at such a time 
will pay you monthly income from the day you become per¬ 
manently incapacitated until the day you recover or die and then 
will turn over to your widow, when you die, the full face value 
of the policy itself. 

“Write your full name right here on this line.” 

Prompt Collections. By G. N. Martin. 

What is the secret of a clean collection sheet? Experience 
clearly shows that the average applicant has no intention other 
than paying the premium on his policy at the time of receiving 
either the policy or the renewal receipt and he will pay it provided 
the salesman has stiffening enought in his spinal column to de¬ 
mand that the premium be paid when it is due. 

The two-thirds of our field men who make a practice of prompt 
collections have adopted this plan. They have made it a rule 
that all premiums either be collected upon delivery or that some 
definite arrangement be made as to when the premium will be 
paid. They realize that they are selling goods well worth the 
money and have no hesitancy in asking for the purchase price. 

170 



SELLING ACCIDENT AND THE DISABILITY FEATURE 


Meeting Objections in Accident Solicitation. By a writer in 

the Aetnaizer. 

Don’t attempt to ride roughshod over a prospect’s objections. 
Acknowledge the reasonableness of his viewpoint before attempt¬ 
ing to meet the objection. The following paragraphs, which are 
merely undeveloped thoughts, may assist you in overcoming some 
of the more common objections. 

THE “CAREFUL” MAN. 

“As you say, you are doubtless careful. Yet you are constantly 
exposed to the carelessness of other people. In fact most of the 
victims of serious accident rightly blame others, or an unfortun¬ 
ate combination of circumstances, and not themselves. Here are 
some striking facts regarding the frequency of accidents and 
illness. (Use statistics.) In the face of such facts isn’t it 
obvious that the best thing the careful man can do to prove 
that he IS careful is to take out disability insurance?” 

“i can’t afford it.” 

“At first glance, it may seem that you can’t afford it. Yet, on 
second thought, you will see that the man whose income is 
largely or wholly absorbed by current expenses is the man 
who can least afford to be without income insurance. He would 
not have a surplus to bridge him over a period of disability.” 

“i CARRY LIFE INSURANCE.” 

“I am glad to hear that you carry life insurance. No one 
should be without it. Most of us, however, would like to feel 
that we could afford to carry more than we do. Statistics 
emphasize the possibility of death by accident, so why not supple- 
| ment life insurance by a substantial accident policy? For a 

premium of $. you will create an additional cash estate 

payable immediately in the event of your accidental death. For 
example”—(then present the principal sum features of the policy). 

“i SELDOM TRAVEL.” 

“It might seem that the chances of getting hurt were greatly 
! reduced because you seldom travel. It may surprise you to 
; know that the Aetna, over a long period of years, has paid 36 
\ pgr cent, more claims as a result of injuries sustained about 
the home than for all travel accidents.” 

“i ALREADY CARRY LIFE INSURANCE. 

“I am glad you realize the value of this form of protection. 
I do not wish to disturb your present policy but should appre- 

171 





SALES METHODS 


ciate it if you will permit me to describe, briefly, the Aetna con¬ 
tract. (Unless the prospect objects, proceed with your solicita¬ 
tion and you may sell him additional insurance. In any event 
you should be able to ascertain the amount of his present policy, 
the company, and expiration date. Make note of these points. 
Be particularly' careful not to speak disparagingly of the man's 
judgment in buying his policy.) You may feel that you already 
have sufficient Accident insurance. Remember, however, that 
the purchasing power of the dollar is approximately but half 
of what it was a few years ago. What w r ould have been sufficient 
protection then would be insufficient now.” 

“i CAN BUY A CHEAPER POLICY.” 

“Of course you can buy a cheaper policy. And so long as 
you have no occasion to use it you would be money in pocket. 
The real test of values, how’ever, w r ould come when a claim 
arose under such a policy. At such a time you would agree with 
me that you get only what you pay for. The Aetna Life Insur¬ 
ance Company of Hartford is one of the largest and oldest com¬ 
panies in the world writing disability insurance, with all that 
such a distinction implies.” 

Creating Desire for Accident Protection. By J. G. Heyer. 

Desire for accident and health insurance can be created in a 
variety of ways; you will have to use your own judgment and 
treat each case individually. Ninety-nine out of a hundred 
solicitations can be handled from the investment standpoint; in 
other words, the average man is interested in investments and 
by talking along these lines you can make the subject more 
interesting to him. 

We are all working for success—for still greater success. We 
know that we can attain such success if -we are willing and able 
to keep on working for it. We can control our willingness to 
work. Except in a very limited way, however, we can't con¬ 
trol our ability to work. Physical disability is, therefore, prac¬ 
tically the only thing that can prevent our being successful. 
And we can’t any of us be sure we’ll escape injury or illness. 
We’re none of us immune. We are just as likely to meet with 
a serious accident or to contract a serious illness as are the 
many millions that meet with such misfortunes each year. 

Do not hesitate to impress your prospect with the facts. Ask 

172 




SELLING ACCIDENT AND THE DISABILITY FEATURE 

him a few questions to which lie must answer ‘‘Yes.” Keep 
him on the defense. Impress on him that his future success 
depends upon his ability to be on the job. Ask him what lie’s 
working for; he will hesitate and that’s your opportunity to 
come back strong. Don’t weaken at this stage. Let him know 
it costs money to be disabled; advise him to be one of the wise 
ones and insure the assets he is trying to accumulate. Urge 
him to insure his life insurance premiums, his building and loan 
assessments; his saving account, his investments. Make him 
realize that it would be foolish for him to be one of those fel¬ 
low's w r ho figure that they can carry their ow r n insurance and 
then get smashed up or get sick and lose the assets they have 
worked so hard for. Tell him he can insure himself for minor 
ailments but not for the big ones. 

That’s creating desire. Now give him the contract and don’t 
just hit the high spots. Explain it “from soup to nuts.” Take 
the accident coverage first, then the health, and when you are 
through don’t make the mistake of saying, “This contract costs 
$75 or $150.” It isn’t a question of cost. It’s an investment, or 
a tax on his income to insure against additional expenses as well 
as loss of income, and to further insure the assets he has already 
accumulated. 

Double Indemnity a Frill to Assist Solicitors. By Henry Moir. 

“Double Indemnity” is a title often used for this benefit. It 
is the most common expression; but it implies a little more than 
the contract promises, and the heading of this article has been 
chosen as an accurate description of the benefit. The additional 
payment at death will be made only under certain conditions 
which must be fulfilled. The benefit is threefore a form of 
limited life insurance and is not, properly speaking, a double 
indemnity furnishing additional life insurance of the same char¬ 
acter, since it is only payable in the small number of cases of 
those who are killed by accident of a violent nature. 

A good life insurance solicitor will therefore confine his atten¬ 
tion chiefly to life insurance benefits, and keep the accident 
benefit for special cases. The hopeful disposition which we 
human beings all possess leads us to argue that, barring accidents 
we shall all live to an old age. Every solicitor meets this mental 
attitude in his daily work. It is a natural optimism, which leads 

173 






SALES METHODS 


to peace of mind, although it may not be scientifically true. It 
is unwise on the part of a life insurance agent to encourage it 
by offering accident insurance, especially if he allows the pros¬ 
pect to go off with the impression that he carries protection for 
the amount of the life and accident combined. The life insured 
should be trained to think of the smaller amount of life insur¬ 
ance which he carries, and to look upon the additional benefit 
as a side issue not to be counted in considering the proper 
amount of life insurance which should be carried. There are 
many forms of illnesses not covered by the accident benefit, but 
which cut off men who have every appearance of strong and 
rugged health:—for example, typhoid fever, pneumonia, appendi¬ 
citis, and other ills to which the healthy succumb even more 
frequently than they do to violent accidental injury. Moreover, 
life insurance is more than mere protection to the thoughtful 
man—it is family protection and thrift combined. Many family 
men living on a salary can save nothing except their life insur¬ 
ance premiums. The accident benefit does not share this advan¬ 
tage with life insurance. 


174 


CHAPTER XI 


SELLING OLD AGE PROTECTION 

Independence in Old Age. By James A. Fulton. 

One of the most tragic figures of modern life is the penniless 
old man. And of 100 men, 25 years old, only 64 are living at 
age 65, of which 53, or 83 per cent, are dependent on relatives 
or charity for support. They have not only failed to accumulate 
anything to leave to their children, but have failed in their first 
duty—to provide for their own declining years. 

Poverty robs age of all its dignity. Instead of looking back 
at years of successful effort, they are reminded at every turn 
that all their hopes and aspirations and years of work have come 
to naught. Everything they eat, every stitch they wear is a bitter 
reminder of failure. Here is another contingency that none of 
us care to face. The way to avoid it is life insurance. 

After serving the needs of a man and his family from the 
time he as a young man undertakes responsibilities until he lays 
them down as an old man, life insurance then steps in and gives 
him an income for his old age. A contract payable at 65 or 
adjustable income contract will furnish an income beginning at 
age 65,. when he is ready to begin to take things easy. But even 
if the need for protection for his family and limited financial 
resources have made it impossible for him to carry endowment 
insurance, still he is not penniless in his old age. A $10,000 
whole life contract taken at age 25 can be cashed in at 65 and 
the proceeds will buy a life income of $51.20 a month. If carried 
to age 70, the same amount will buy a life income of $70.88 a 
month. 

Living to Enjoy Life Insurance. By Frederick A. Wallis. 

When you sell a man a 15-payment, or a 20-payment, or a 1- 
payment—any kind of a payment—life policy, you are not selling 
him life insurance but death insurance. He has to die to get the 
money. 

While I was coming over to Philadelphia from New York, 
I noticed an account in the newspaper where a jeweler had 

175 


SALES METHODS 


been killed for his money. That man died to save his money 
yet under the life policy, he has to die before he gets it. 

Sell a man ail income policy. Let him live; we never die. 
We all want to live forever. I remember when I first started 
in the insurance business in Kentucky. I called to see a prospect 
and stated my proposition. 

“Sonny,” he said, when I had finished, “you have a very good 
proposition, but I have to die before I get the money.” 

That gave me something to think about. Since then I have 
been trying to get away from the gloomy side of the business— 
to think and talk about the bright and cheery side of it. And 
that’s something that a great many salesmen do, hammer on the 
dark and gloomy side of life insurance. 

The other day, I called my salesmen into the office and told 
them to imagine a number of men getting on a street car to go 
to Wall street, where all the banks are. On one side of the 
car, one man has a 10-vear endowment; another has a 20-year 
endowment; another a 40-year endowment; some a long term 
endowment, etc. They get off at Wall street. Here is one man 
60 years old; here is another 65; there is one 70; even one at 
75. But they walk with a light step. They don’t feel old. They 
are going in the bank to cash in a $5,000, a $10,000, a $50,000 
policy. Then they are going to invest it in some safe security. 
They come out with a light step; a young step. They know 
that their old age is taken care of. They can live in ease. 

On the other side of the car one man has a 10-payment life; 
another has a 20-payment life; one may have a single payment 
life. They, too, get off at Wall street. But their step are not 
light. They carry their old age. They go across the street to 
the Trinity church cemetery. They never come back. They 
cash in. They lock themselves in the vault and are gone. 

An Effective Circular Letter. By George A. Smith. 

Dear Mr. Prospect: 

Were you ever at Denver in the old days when the Cherrelyn 
horse car was in operation? If you ever saw it you will recall 
that the good old horse pulled the car up the long hill to Cher¬ 
relyn and then got on the back end of the car and coasted down 
the hill on the return trip. 

The type of contract which I told you about will do for you 

176 


SELLING OLD-AGE PROTECTION 


what toe car did for the good old horse, after you have pulled 
up the hill of life to the top where you will want to retire or 
at least to be able to retire. This contract will afford you the 
means of coasting down the grade of old age in comfort. Just 
what size car it will take for you and the best means of pulling 
it up the hill so that you will be able to get it to the top and 
have ample room when you start to coast, are the two things 
which our service will help you to know. 

Why not accept good service which puts you under no obliga¬ 
tion? 

[This letter was accompanied by a print of the famous picture 
of the horse riding down hill on the street car platform.] 

A Secure Investment. By William Id. Harrison. 

When daughters have married, when sons are at work, when 
the wife, if living, has few essential needs, a man has outgrown 
in great measure the need for family protection, but old age 
frequently looms threatening and terrible. 

Poverty is often an attribute of old age. The American Bank¬ 
ers Association is credited with the statement that over 90 per 
cent of men living at age 65 are not wholly self-supporting. The 
most casual observation will disclose local examples to substan¬ 
tiate this statement. Men are over-confident, over-optimistic. 
While accepting in general the truth that poverty, want, dis¬ 
ability are often present in old age, each expects to be an excep¬ 
tion. A disregard of the value of small savings results in fail¬ 
ure to accumulate. 

In contrast to the insecurity of many investments, we offer 
the perfect security of life insurance. To meet the needs so 
clearly apparent, we offer old age protection through endow¬ 
ments maturing at 60 or later. 

We recognize that unexpected contingencies constitute a great 
difficulty in any long-time saving method—changes in personal 
affairs, in the family, or in physical condition. No plan devised 
can be perfect, but old age protection through life insurance 
seems more nearly perfect than any other human device or plan. 
We care for changes in personal affairs by generous loan and 
surrender privileges; for changes in ■ family relations by liberal 
beneficiary clauses; for changes in physical condition by the 
12 177 


SALES METHODS 


wonderful disability provisions now almost universally included 
in insurance contracts. 

And so we influence men in youth, when the blood runs warm 
and hopes are high, to begin systematic saving against that remote 
future day when 60, 65 or 70 may come. We preach the gospel 
of thrift; we influence toward careful use of money; we en¬ 
courage, strengthen, conserve; we assure a competency in old 
age and remove the dread of dependence or poverty in those 
years when the e} r es turn backward and memory calls up the 
visions of the past, and thus we guarantee a serene old age. 

Demonstrating Old-Age Income Contract. By Henry 

Kronshein and J. B. Oetting. 

The following was staged by Henry Kronsbein, St. Louis, as 
salesman, and J. B. Oetting, St. Louis, as prospect: 

Salesman —Good morning, Mr. Oetting. 

Prospect —Good morning. 

Salesman —Mr. Oetting, my name is Kronsbein; I am from 
the Guardian Life. You sent in a card the other day requesting 
full information as regards our life income endowment policy. 
I am here at your service. 

Prospect —Well, you know I got the letter through the mail 
and, to be candid with you, I expected a reply by mail. That 
was some time ago. I was somewhat lukewarm then, but now 
I am not interested. 

Salesman —You say you expected this information by letter, 
but I feel that we can be of much better service to you by a 
personal interview. Many questions might arise in your mind 
and answering them by mail might be difficult, and would only 
mean prolonged action. Since you were kind enough to state 
your age on the card, I was able to prepare an outline for your 
age. Now beginning at age 65, you will receive an income of 
§100 per month as long as you live. Should you die before hav¬ 
ing received as much as the amount insured for—a fraction over 
$14,000—the difference will be paid to your estate. Should you 
become totally and permanently disabled through accident or 
sickness, all future premiums are waived, and you will receive a 
monthly income of $100 without any deductions from the face 
amount of the policy when it becomes a claim either by death 
or maturity. Should you die by accident, it means $24,000 to 

178 


SELLING OLD-AGE PROTECTION 


your estate. In this policy you are protected in every way; it 
assures your independence at age 65, it provides an income 
should you become disabled, and furnishes ready cash through 
its loan values on demand, should this become necessary. 

Prospect That seems to be a fancy policy, and I expect the 
cost is very high. 

Salesman —There is no cost whatever. It is a saving, for you 
get out everything you have deposited with us and more. By 
the way, Mr. Oetting, what do you figure your yearly deposits 
should have to be to secure a contract of this kind? I am 
merely asking this to see how good a judge you are. 

Prospect —I don’t know anything about this kind of insur¬ 
ance. Mine is on the Ordinary Life plan and I am paying now 
about $25 a month. But I suppose this would be much higher 
and would estimate it to be $35 a month. 

Salesman —Mr. Oetting, that is correct within a dollar. The 
amount actually is $36 a month, less the increasing annual 
dividends. 

Prospect —You say $36 a month. Adding this to my present 
outlay for insurance would be just a little more than I can afford, 
I am afraid. 

Salesman —Now, Mr. Oetting, from what information I have 
regarding you, I am convinced that you save a nice sum each 
month besides that which you are now putting away for life 
insurance. If you were not saving this additional money, you 
would be drifting into that class of men who are dependent on 
others in old age. Then again, where could you place your 
money vrhere it would be of mere value and safer than into a 
contract of this kind? 

Prospect —No, I guess insurance is the safest place to save. 

Salesman —Bear in mind that should you outlive this policy 
from an investment standpoint it has meant an earning of close 
to 2 l /z% per cent, compound interest not saying anything about 
the saving thereon from the various forms of taxation to which 
this form of investment is not subjected. 

Prospect —This contract actually nets me a small percentage? 

Salesman —Yes. 

Prospect —This is a new wrinkle in insurance. 

Salesman —Yes, Air. Oetting, this is a wonderful contract and 
besides it means much more to your family, for we must never 

179 


SALES METHODS 


overlook our obligations toward them. Our responsibilities 
toward them do not cease at death, but are carried beyond the 
grave. Unless we make suitable provision when we have the 
opportunity through such a contract as this, the burden will have 
have to be assumed by someone else. And I know, Mr. Oetting, 
that you would not permit such a condition to arise. Before 
you sign this application, Mr. Oetting, allow me to ask just a few 
questions, in order to avoid a possible rejection. Have you 
been examined lately, for life insurance? 

Prospect —Not during the last two years. 

Salesman —Did you receive a policy at that time as applied for? 

Prospect —Yes, I did. 

Salesman —Has any change in your personal or family his¬ 
tory taken place? 

Prospect —No. 

Salesman —Then I can see no reason why you should not be 
able to pass a satisfactory medical examination. Who would you 
want to name as beneficiary under this policy? 

Prospect —Well, Mr. Kronsbein, I think that we are going just 
a little too fast, as there are some points to be settled in my mind. 

Salesman —What are they? 

Prospect —Well, the most important point is, of course, the 
paving for this policy. 

Salesman —Oh, we will arrange that to suit your conven¬ 
ience. I would advise, however, if you cannot pay the full 
.amount that you make at least part payment with the application, 
for this would give your family the protection immediately after 
the Home Office has approved the issuance of this policy. With¬ 
out this part settlement, you must be in good health when the 
policy is delivered. 

Prospect —Naturally that is worthy of some consideration. 
What is the least that would be required with the application? 

Salesman —Could you make a payment of $50. 

Prospect —Well—yes, I suppose so. 

Salesman —All right; that’s fine. As to the rest, could you 
pay half of it in thirty days and the rest in 60? 

Prospect —That is satisfactory, and should I need a little addi¬ 
tional time that can be arranged, I presume? 

Salesman —Certainly. We shall always be at your service. 
Now just a few questions as to the application. Where were 

180 


SELLING OLD-AGE PROTECTION 


you born ? Please sign your name right here in full and I will 
prepare the two notes for your signature. This completes the 
application. When can you be examined ? 

Prospect —Next Tuesday any time between two and four 
o’clock in the afternoon. 

Salesman—l will arrange accordingly, and I want to thank 
you very much for this business, and I know you will always be 
proud of your contract. 

Fires the Imagination. By G. J. A. Reany. 

If you are appealing to a man who needs a fund for his old 
age, you have got an easy appeal to fire the imagination. Nobody 
loves a poor old man. You can see poor old men upon the street* 
of your city, ill-clad, unkempt, beard untrimmed, face not clean, 
clothes tattered and everybody upon the streets giving them a 
wide berth. It is one of the sad facts in human life, that 
nobody loves an old man. On the other hand you never saw an 
old man of eighty years of age with his beard silky and well 
trimmed, clean collar and tie, a nice clean suit of clothes, hair 
tidy but you want to shake hands with him. Haven’t you got 
them, an appeal when you present that case. 


181 


CHAPTER XII 


SELLING MONTHLY INCOME 


Definite Proposition for a Busy Man. By Frank T. McNally. 

Monthly income insurance furnishes us a definite proposition 
to interest a busy man. Why not find out who the prospect is, 
who are his dependents, their ages, etc? Then talk with some 
definiteness. Why not give him something to fix his mind upon? 
Why not talk about something interesting—why not forget the 
picture of the hearse, shroud and the undertaker, and talk about 
the time when his daughter will secure financial comfort and 
certainty from a life income of so much per month? 

A man once told me that income insurance had no charms 
for him, that he had considerable property. I asked him just one 
favor—that he would compute what the actual income to his wife 
would be in case of his death to-day. I told him that I would 
return—that he need not tell me the amount of the income, but 
that I wanted him to compute it just for his own information. 
He did so and told me frankly that he would leave property, 
equities, etc., in the amount of $60,000, but that the actual income 
in case he died that day would be $903.60 per year. By monthly 
income insurance he has since raised that income to at least 
$2,103.60. 

If you tell the prospect that you would like to increase his line 
by writing him five or ten thousand more and he says he does 
not care to, you are, in the language of the street, “out of luck;'’ 
you are up against a stone wall. Why not suggest some par¬ 
ticular reason, some attractive reason why he should increase 
his line? Suppose he carries $5,000. Why not suggest $4,070 
more, which would make a total of $9,070, giving $50 per month 
for 20 years? If he carries $10,000, why not suggest that $5,000 
more, together with the old insurance, under Option A, would 
produce $100 per month for 223 months, or a total of $22,200. 
or, including interest, over double the present amount carried? 

182 


SELLING MONTHLY INCOME 


Support Through the Period of Dependency. By Charles W. 
Scovel. 

Lump sum money does not, will not and cannot support de¬ 
pendent life through the period of dependency. All authorities 
arc agreed on this except insurance men—who have not studied 
the problem. Every outstanding and future dependency contract 
should be put into the form of monthly indemnity, else it is a 
sham and broken reed. 

We dare not pose as experts on the dependency question and 
recommend a lump sum, knowing full well it would soon be 
spent and leave the family in dire poverty. It is more trouble 
for us to study this problem of monthly indemnity, but we must 
do it. We must make it clear to the father of the family when 
we sell the contract and must urge him to take the monthly in¬ 
come plan. We must gain his confidence, but we can never 
expect to if we go to him babbling about some other fellow’s 
affairs. 

Man’s Confidence in His Wife. By J. Elliott Hall. 

When I get to talking life insurance with a man, I find that 
almost invariably he has unbounded confidence in his wife. He 
believes, for instance, if he has a $50,000 contract that there is 
no need of arranging it to be paid in monthly installments. He 
believes that his wife is thoroughly able to take care of herself. 
Every man thinks his wife is an exception, is different—that is 
why he married her. He believes she has good judgment, and 
knows enough to look after her money. It is not my idea to 
try to prove to a man that his wife lacks business judgment or 
foresight, but only to make him understand that most of them 
do. The records of the country show that in 97 cases out of 
every 100, where estates of $5,000 or over are left, the entire 
estate is dissipated at the end of seven years. I tell the man 
that I am talking to, “I do not know' whether or not your wife 
is able to handle your business affairs just as you w'ould handle 
them if you were to remain on the job. Perhaps your wife is 
one of the three out of every 100 who could take care of things. 
I do not know'. If I did I would be a wizard, but I do know' 
that the average woman falls down on that sort of thing, and 
w'hy shouldn’t she? What does the average woman know about 
investments? She goes along all her life depending on her hus- 

183 






SALES METHODS 


hand, and suddenly at his death has enormous responsibilities 
thrust upon her and is expected to exercise just exactly the same 
judgment that her husband would show if he were passing on 
the same questions. Would you give your wife $10,000 and tell 
her to go downtown and invest it for you without making any 
suggestions of any kind to her as to what sort of an investment 
you expected her to get, but simply relying on her to bring home 
something that would suit you in every particular. You wouldn’t 
do that, would you? Why should you? Isn’t it reasonable to 
think that you know more about investments than your wife 
does? Why is life insurance any different from the rest? When 
I can offer you a definite, clear-cut and positive way of provid¬ 
ing funds for your wife, why should you leave her the money 
in a lump sum with a strong possibility that it will all be gone 
within a few years?” 

Fourteen Reasons. By C. N. Berger. 

At an agency meeting which I attended all present were asked 
to give reasons in favor of monthly income protection. These 
were tabulated and those of the same kind eliminated, and when 
we got through we had 14 good reasons to show our prospects. 

1. It creates and leaves an estate which entails no expense of 
administration or handling. 

2. It leaves “his money” so the “other fellow” won’t get it. 

3. It generally increases an estate from 25 to 50%. 

4. It provides a “Remembrance Policy.” 

5. It provides a fund that cannot be lost in speculation. 

6. It affords an educational fund. 

7. It is a fund exempt from taxation. 

8. It is an income guaranteed for life, giving a feeling of 
security that only the possessor of such a fund can know. 

9. It is a fund paid in a form a widow appreciates, for the 
average woman thinks of money in the form of income at stated 
periods. 

10. It is a fund that can be arranged to cover periodical fixed 
charges such as rent, taxes, interest or principal payments on a 
home. 

11. It is a legacy independent of provisions of a will and not 
subject to a “breaking” lawsuit. 

12. It is better than a pensXn, because it cannot be stopped. 

184 


SELLING MONTHLY INCOME 


13. It is a fund not subject to diminution. 

14. It is as certain as death and taxes; and, because of its 
certainty, encourages longevity. It is an old saying that "annu¬ 
itants never die.” Freedom from care and from the fear of out¬ 
living an income will do much to add years to life and enjoy¬ 
ment of those years. 

Creation of a Larger and Lasting Estate. By Frank H. 

Wheeler. 

The primary object of a life insurance contract is to create 
an estate at once, and life insurance offers the only sure way an 
estate can be created. The second object is to make such an 
estate safe and dependable. The third need is to bring it within 
reach of those who ought to have it. 

Now the consideration of the sale of income insurance brings 
into thought two more points, first the creation of an estate, the 
character of which shall be more lasting, one which shall render 
service for a longer time after the departure of the one who 
purchased it, and second, the creation of larger estates. I sug¬ 
gest here that the size of an estate is of no more importance 
than the character of it. Had you or I passed away a few years 

ago, possessed of $100,000 of brewery stock, the income from 

it to-day would probably be a shocking disappointment to our 
family. Instances are known of men of wealth during their 

lifetime, who left their estates to their families in the shape of 

large holdings of New York, New Haven & Hartford railway 
stock, doubtless thinking they were leaving their loved ones well 
provided for, but some of these loved ones are objects of char¬ 
ity to-day. 

Income insurance not only creates an estate but it makes it 
safer, puts it within reach of the people who need it, and at 
the same time it creates a larger estate. When you have sold 
an income contract you have created or sold the best kind of 
property on earth, the only kind of property of which the owner 
can say that he knows absolutely what the income from that 
property will be in event of his death. It is property that is 
exempt from taxes, exempt from creditors, a property that can¬ 
not be assigned, or commuted, or lost; a property that requires 
no management, no investment, no administrator's costs, no 
court costs, no delays and no publicity. Frequently I enjoy ask¬ 
ing a business man to tell me of any other kind of property that 

185 


SALES METHODS 


measures up to these advantages. It is the best way I know of 
to obtain a.n interview with a busy business man. Call, his atten¬ 
tion to the fact that when he creates this property he has become 
his own administrator of his estate, the guardian of his own 
children, the executor, if you please, of his family’s destiny. 

A Stone Instead of Wooden House. By Robert J. Mix. 

I used to like to talk ‘‘life insurance,” but, somehow, since 
monthly income was born, all other topics seem to dwindle into 
insignificance! 

When you stop to consider that the man who thinks he wants 
a $5,000 policy can, for just about the same money, enter into 
an agreement with us whereby we will absolutely guarantee that 
his wife shall never come to want, why it seems such a pity— 
such an awful pity—that you can’t always make him see it that 
way! 

Of course, I’m glad to see a man buying life insurance, for life 
insurance is a good thing—a good thing for the insured and his 
family, and the sale of it pads my pocketbook, but heavens and 
earth, what is it compared to monthly income protection? 

Take this chap who thinks he wants a $5,000 lump-sum con¬ 
tract. On a given day, suppose you were to take him out into 
the country and show him a fine building lot; say to him “Now, 
my friend, for the same amount of money, I’ll put you up on this 
lot a wooden house or a stone one. Which will you have? 

How long do you suppose that man would hesitate? In the 
first place, he’d stare at you blankly and ask himself if you were 
crazy; but when you convinced him that you meant just what 
you said; that you would guarantee that there should not be a 
flaw in the stone house when it was completed; that the work¬ 
manship should be first-class in every particular—how long do 
you suppose he’d hesitate in making his choice? 

“The stone house by all means; it’s warmer in winter, it’s 
cooler in summer; it looks better and it’ll last longer—the 
stone house by all means if you’re sure it can be built for the 
same money!” 

Well, now, brethren, make your own application of the illus¬ 
tration ! 

There isn’t a flaw in the argument—the $5,000 contract is the 
wooden house—it’s worth having; it’s a deal better than no 

186 


SELLING MONTHLY INCOME 


house—but the $25 or $30 monthly income protection contract is 
the stone house, and it’s a whole lot more worth having! 

Fellows, you’ve got to drive this story home! Don’t be dis¬ 
couraged—don’t for a moment let up on your monthly income 
protection talk—it’s the real thing—you know it and I know it, 
but the great people don’t yet know it, so we’ve just got to keep 
on hammering away—hammering away—until the glad day 
arrives when monthly income protection comes into its own! 

A Wolf Checkmated. By a writer in Travelers’ Record. 

Walking home from the office as is my usual custom I noticed 
the immaculate and imposing figure of Theophilus Bludgett 
mounting the steps of No. 37. 

Now what in thunder, thought I, leads his feet to Mrs. Blake's 
<loor? It can't be that he has started on an early courting, for 
Jim’s widow isn’t the type that would appeal in the least to 
Theophilus. 

I had slowed up my step when Theophilus, having rung the 
bell, turned and seeing me waved his hand in the usual familiar 
fashion of his kind. 

Curiosity as to the visit of that urbane gentleman finally drove 
me after dinner to Mrs. Blakes door. After talking about Jim 
I asked her if there was any way in which I could be of 
.assistance. 

“Jim had such a lot of friends,” she said, “every one is so 
kind and thoughtful. Mr. Bludgett was here just this afternoon. 
He is such a sympathetic man. He thought the world of Jim.” 

Evidently a post-mortem appreciation, I thought, or an appre¬ 
ciation of what Jim might have left behind him. But as long 
experience has impressed me with the fact that arguments as 
to personalities with the gentler sex makes them suspicious of 
you, I remarked with a certain banality, “Every one did.” 

“Do you know what he offered to do?” 

I confessed I did not. 

“He told me that he knew Jim was not very well off and that 
I might need a hundred or so in cash right now, and he would 
be glad to let me have it. Then he said I needed to get the 
largest return on my money that I could with perfect safety. He 
had spent a long time studying the best paying and safest in¬ 
vestments and had found after consulting with one of the larg- 

187 


SALES METHODS 


est and most reliable bankers in New York one or two stocks 
that would yield me from 12 to 15 per cent with a chance of ex¬ 
tras from time to time, though he couldn't promise for the ex¬ 
tras.” 

I thought this was conservative of Theophilus. Certainly the 
investment would yield him considerably more than that, but I 
said, “What did you do?” 

“I told him I had about $500 a year in Liberty bonds, United 
States Steel preferred, and some other bonds. He asked me if 
there was any cash. I told him I had about $200, and I thought, 
a $10,000 insurance policy. ‘There,’ said he, ‘is the money to in¬ 
vestments he had in mind, I would have a nice cozy income.” 

“And you did?” I asked, about ready to give up the ghost. 

“It was just too bad,” she answered, “I cannot think why Jim 
did it, but I got the insurance policy and showed it to Mr. Blud- 
gett, he looked it over and he was so disappointed.” 

“What did he say?” 

“He said, ‘Oh ! It’s one of those damned things, is it!” 

“Shocking,” said I. 

“Well,” she remarked with a trace of resentment, “It did not 
give me the money, it gave me about $60 a month, and that was 
vest!’ and he figured that with the $500 and the $1,500 from in- 
much less than Mr. Bludgett could have gotten for me.” 

Demonstrating Sale to Father of Young Girls. By W. E. 

Bilheimer. 

Mr. Bilheimer: Now notice, I am going to sit down, and you 
will find from time to time that I approach this man and step 
away from him again. I claim salesmanship contains more dra¬ 
matics than any actor on the stage ever dared to assume, and 
that we are just beginning to find out that it works. 

“What is your little girl’s name?” 

Mr. Armstrong: “Bernice.” 

Mr. B.: “Named after the mother, I guess.” 

Mr. A.: “No.” 

Mr. B.: “Not a familv name, eh? She is seven. (I get the 
little girl’s name first because I don’t want to say, “your little 
girl.” I want to talk to him about Bernice; that is a dominant, 
vibrant personality to this man; it is his daughter.) “The only 
little girl you got?” 


188 


SELLING MONTHLY INCOME 


Mr. A.: “No, I have another one, Dorothy, ten years old.” 

Mr. B.: “Mr. Armstrong, there are three things that may hap¬ 
pen to either Dorothy or Bernice, that may happen to any man’s 
daughter. They may marry the wrong man, for instance. Have 
you ever seen a worthless son-in-law, have you ever seen a man 
run through everything that a father left to his daughters, and 
if he did run through with it, would Dorothy and Bernice still 
be your children? They would, wouldn’t they?” 

Mr. A.: “Yes.” 

Mr. B.: “Well, suppose you were dead and Dorothy and Ber¬ 
nice were down here, twenty-one or twenty-two, with two little 
babies and the son-in-law gone and they were facing the world 
alone and there was nobody there to help them, that would be 
pretty tough luck, wouldn’t it?” 

Mr. A.: “Yes.” 

Mr. B.: “Now, they may not marry the wrong man; they may 
marry a perfectly good, moral man, but a man who just can’t 
make a living. Have you ever seen a perfectly good, moral man 
that could not take financial levels?” 

Mr. A.: “Lots of them.” 

Mr. B.: “And then outside of the fact of the moral stamina, 
your daughters would be just as badly off as if he had run 
through with everything, wouldn’t they?” 

Mr. A. “Yes.” 

Mr. B.: “Now if I can leave them forty dollars a month as 
long as they are on earth, no matter how long, there would be 
only one thing that we would have to agree upon, if you had the 
money and if, when you died, you were going to leave it, if you 
were not going to take it with you; and the next thing we have 
to decide is ‘Where best can I leave it?’ because everything you 
are doing in life is for those two little girls. Do they ever climb 
up in your lap in the evening time and put their arms around your 
neck and tell you you are the best daddy in the w r orld?” 

Mr. A.: “Yes.” 

Mr. B.: “Can anything compensate you for that? If your 
lodge were to tell you that they didn’t want you any more and 
your church were to tell you that you couldn't go there that 
would hurt, and if your town were to tell you to move, that 
would hurt; but there isn’t anything in the world would hurt 
you more than if Dorothy and Bernice looked into your face 


SALES METHODS 


tonight and said, ‘Daddy, we have lost confidence in you, you 
were our natural protector and you held our future life in your 
hands and you told us you would look after us and now you are 
gone and where are we?’ 

“Your little girl may never marry at all, and supposing that 
she didn’t, and supposing she becomes an invalid after you die. 
Have you ever seen a girl with a crooked hip or a bent back or 
a wasted limb, rolling around on a two-wheeled, rubber-tired, 
wicker chair? Will you please remember, Mr. Armstrong, your 
death does not insure their good health after you are dead. And 
then again (and this thought strikes home with a man) I have 
two little girls, and I put this policy on when it first came out 
and there isn’t any amount of money can take it away from me, 
and I tell you why. They may marry a man I may never see. 
You know if your daughter loves a man he can do anything on 
earth he likes with her. Supposing Dorothy walks up to some 
great big husky fellow of a man you have never seen and says, 
‘John I want fifty cents or a dollar to go down town to buy some¬ 
thing out of the money father left me,’ and John says, ‘Well, you 
can’t have it.’ Gee, you would feel like coming down out of the 
choir, wouldn’t you? Now all the money that I want from you 
is about $300. You have got it and you know money is worth 
its interest; what is a fair value for money in this state?” 

Mr. A.: “Oh, about seven per cent.” 

Mr. B: “Seven per cent on $300 is twenty-one dollars and I 
am going to put that over here. It is your money, and you know 
how hard it is to get money and what you have to do to get it. 
And over on this side is Dorothy and Bernice. Now let’s weigh 
them. (Mr. Bilheimer uses his two hands to do the weighing, 
the girls hypothetically, in one and the money in the other.) 
Does your twenty-one dollars out-weigh the forty dollars a month 
for these two girls? If it does, you keep it, I don't want it. If 
it does not, I want you to buy this insurance. Now what is the 
answer? You know that it is right or you know it is wrong. 
Is it right or wrong to protect it?” 

Mr. A.: “It is right.” 

Mr. B.: “If it is right, you would not do them a wilful wrong, 
would you?” (Now I signed him then because I caught him. It 
was instinct; that was not through bunkum I got that. That fel¬ 
low was sold.) 


190 


CHAPTER XIII 


WORKING METHODS 

Work Among Winners and Doers and Be One. By Albert 
H. Curtis. 

Form the habit of getting your proposition before the prospect 
at the earliest moment in the interview. The first time that you 
make a complete statement of it, your opportunity for closing 
is the best that you will ever have. The usual way of making 
a call “to break the ice” is all wrong. A salesman more than 
ordinarily successful said: “Provided that I have fully stated 
my proposition, I will not call upon a man more than twice 
unless he can give me reason for so doing. If I cannot make a 
hole with a gimlet I haven’t time to make it with a hammer.” 

Eliminate the hopeless cases. A successful broker said: “One 
of the most valuable faculties in business life is to know when 
to pocket a loss.” Have at least three classes of soliciting cards; 
one group that you are working upon each day, another that is 
fairly active, and the third to be looked over occasionally. 

Employ systematic tests to find how the prospect stands. 
He must be led along and checked up at intervals. The skillful 
agent will know by intuition when and how these tests should 
be applied. 

Employ the methods used by successful salesmen. What 
helps others is quite likely to be helpful to you if you will make 
use of it. 

Associate with men who are winners and doers. We have 
learned to our sorrow that even a common cold is contagious. 
Just so, the personal influence of men who, while they are fair 
enough fellows, have not quite made good, will tend to hold 
you back. On the other hand, you will surely be helped and 
encouraged, in just the same proportion, if you make it a point 
to cultivate the acquaintance and to associate with the men 
Avho are doers and winners in the business world. 

Punctually and carefully make good every promise. Get the 
reputation of always making good. Carelessness is enough to 
render any man poor, without the aid of a single positive vice. 

191 


SALES METHODS 


“joffuny-on-the-spot” is a good name to have, and it will do 
much to help you win every time. Punctuality is the stern virtue 
of men of business. And it is the cheapest of all virtues. Never¬ 
theless, it gives force to even an insignificant character. Be 
punctual, accurate in your statements, and careful of every little 
detail of your work. 

Are You Getting the Most Out of Your Interviews? By F. 

A. G. Merrill. 

All insurance salesmen know and most of them will admit 
that if they make enough calls, they will average a goodly 
number of interviews, but one type of salesman will average a 
much larger number of sales from the same number of inter¬ 
views than another type, and the principal reason is that one 
knows what to do with an interview and another does not. The 
first goes direct to the main things—namely an effort to give 
reasons and illustrations that will reach home. The other 
flounders about and his mind has neither an anchor nor a 
compass. 

The first type talks with sincerity and strength of expression 
that compels belief and sells himself to his prospect as much as 
he sells the insurance contract. Furthermore, if he does not 
get his logic and reasoning over, he tries another curve for there 
are many ways of conveying an idea. Remember some people 
cannot grasp an idea by merely hearing it; some must both 
hear and see it by pencil illustration. Some must have an 
illustration by application of the thought to their own business 
or profession. 

The salesman without imagination and ability to illustrate is 
greatly handicapped. In talking over cases with salesmen and 
offering suggestions, the reply is often made, “I did tell him 
that, but it made no difference.” Later in the conversation, I 
find I have succeeded in selling the proposition to the salesman 
by giving the same reason, but in two or three different ways. 

Even if he does not close the sale after a good interview, he 
does not waste time blaming his prospect for not buying; but 
immediately endeavors to find out where he himself failed and 
plans for the next move, for it’s his if he expects to win. 

The second type may give good reasons to his prospect, but 
his talk may lack sincerity and strength of expression and 

192 


con 


WORKING METHODS 


sequently be does not. make a favorable impression and fails to 
sell himself. He is apt to think the prospect unreasonable and 
indifferent to the needs of his family or his business or estate. 
He seldom analyzes his work. If he would put himself in the 
other man's position, consider what he said to his prospect and 
how he presented his proposition, being absolutely fair in his 
conclusions, could he truthfully say that the arguments or logic 
presented would have caused him to buy? 

We must have good reasons for insuring; we must have a 
lot of them and we must have many ways of telling or demon¬ 
strating them. We must talk straight—we must fit our expres¬ 
sions to the type of man we talk to. 

Many people look upon life insurance as very complicated and 
mysterious. This is largely the fault of the insurance salesman. 
Make your reasons for insuring clear and convincing. Make 
your explanation of the insurance options and provisions clear 
—talk United States language and less insurance terms and last, 
but not least—talk as though you believe what you say and 
believe in the goods you have to sell. If you don’t believe all 
you say, you are not likely to make your prospect believe it or 
believe in you. 

There is more thought and attention being given to life in¬ 
surance and salesmanship today than ever before. There are 
a number of excellent journals full of good ideas, but you must 
put into practice what you read and hear. 

When a doctor is given a certificate that allows him to 
practice, it doesn’t mean that he is a finished product; after 
he has “practiced” giving dope and cutting up a few people, he 
begins to know that practical side of his profession. 

You can be a walking encyclopedia on life insurance but you 
must learn how to cash in on this knowledge; the surest way 
is consistent soliciting and constant analysis of your work. 

Action on First Interview. By Frank T. McNally. 

In order to interest a busy man in the first interview you 
should present a definite proposition—give him something to 
think about. The figures “$26.13” are more interesting to a 
business man than the most eloquent generalization. 

Don’t ask him how much he pays for insurance. When a 
takes hold of a pad and computes his expenditures for 
13 193 


man 


SALES METHODS 


coal, the result usually drives him into a temporary fit of 
economy. It is likewise when he computes the total of his life 
insurance payments. Life insurance salesmanship on first inter¬ 
view is interwoven with psychology and it is very bad psychology 
to talk too much about cost. 

No one can tell you the exact manner in which the prospect 
can be interested and closed. If it were known, you would not 
be paid for finding out. It is finally up to you to sell the man 
at the other side of the desk. Upon him depends your partial 
success as a life salesman. Your failure may help you some 
but don’t forget this: your success will help you more. You 
come to see him for something, to sell him. If you come away 
without doing so on the first interview you have failed to 
accomplish what you set out to do. You will never succeed so 
long as you nonchalantly wander from office to office having 
so-called “interviews” lasting about one minute each. You oc¬ 
casionally will find a streak of paying ore by luck and you 
may write $75,000 per j^ear by such methods and some men 
never get beyond them. 

A child can take an application from a man who wants in¬ 
surance but I take off my hat to the salesman who can wander 
into a strange office and sell a stranger on first interview a con¬ 
tract which he didn’t have the remotest idea of buying. That 
is salesmanship and it is being done every day! I respect the 
life insurance salesman who by virtue of endeavoring qualities 
has loyal friends who give him their business and their friends’ 
business but the real insurance salesman is the one who can 
wander into a stranger’s office and step by step create business 
where none existed before. 

The Law of Compensation. By E. J. Dunn. 

“What one man steals another must lose.” That is theft, 
burglary or robbery. The criminal code recognizes and defines 
it as such. There is no Square Deal in any such transaction. 
“What one man wins another must lose.” That is gambling. 
The penal code designates it as a public offense. There is no 
Square Deal in gambling. The bulls or the bears invariably 
fleece the lambs. “What one man buys another must sell.” 
Eliminate fraudulent transactions covered by this statement and 
you have left the only business realm in which the Square Deal 
can have free scope of action. The world is full of people who 

194 


WORKING METHODS 


want to get something for nothing, or for almost nothing. They 
can t attain their desires, unless they resort to fraud, gambling 
or crime. Such methods may succeed for a time but they can¬ 
not last, simply because every honest man’s hand is against them. 

Now honest men maj r , or they may not, be in the majority. 
That is a debatable question. But, however much men may 
argue and however widely they may differ, the fact remains 
that honest men and honest policies prevail in the long run. 
I hroughout human history these victories of honesty have been 
the stepping stones of progress. In the old common law is a 
legal maxim, “caveat emptor.” It means “let the purchaser be¬ 
ware.” That legal maxim once had universal application but its 
field of operation has become greatly restricted within recent 
years. Honest men—men who both give and demand the 
Square Deal—have very greatly narrowed its field of action. 
Most banks, most stores, most insurance companies and most 
fraternal societies are honest and reliable. They believe in the 
Square Deal and practice it. The same statement may be made 
about their highest grade of salesmen. However, it is a different 
story with other grades. 

The Square Deal is not merely a matter of sympathy or of 
good intentions. It is a highly complicated concept. Many 
factors enter into it. Ideals enter into it. Common sense enters 
into it. Co-operation enters into it. All the desirable qualities 
of character enter into it. The golden rule enters into it. The 
law of Compensation is the bed-rock upon which it stands. 
Great is the Square Deal! There is no substitute for it and 
there is nothing else that is half so good. 

We have already pointed out the three-fold nature of the 
Square Deal. First is our conduct towards ourselves. Second 
is our conduct towards others. Third is the conduct of others 
towards us. To give one’s self an absolutely Square Deal re¬ 
quires the systematic and industrious application of knowledge 
and ability—both native and acquired. The Square Deal to 
others naturally grows out of the Square Deal to one’s self. 
Centuries ago the immortal Shakespeare sensed this truth, when 
he said: 

“This above all: To thine own self be true 
And it must follow, as the night the day, 

Thou canst not then be false to any man.’* 

195 


SALES METHODS 


In your work as a salesman the Square Deal to yourself be¬ 
comes the fertile soil in which you plant the tree of Success. 
The Square Deal to others becomes the process whereby you 
cultivate, protect and develop to maturity that tree. Through 
a perfectly natural sequence the Square Deal from others buds, 
blooms and ripens into luscious fruit upon that wonderful tree. 
Why feed upon bitter wild crabs or upon gnarly, wormy fruit, 
when the finest fruit in the world may be almost as easily ob¬ 
tained? A little more intelligence, a little more thoughtfulness 
and a little more industry turns the trick. 

Future Benefits from Satisfied Customers. By Edward C. 
Bendere. 

Successful selling is based upon confidence in the thing you 
are selling. You cannot properly sell and properly place insur¬ 
ance, securities or any commodity'- if you do not believe in it. 
Maintain pride and self-respect, and to do this you must realize 
the importance of selling a client the thing he should have. 
Sometimes a conscientious sale may cost a large commission 
and profits on a particular sale may seem small, but the reaction 
is usually good, and a satisfied customer means continued busi¬ 
ness, and eventually substantial profits. No one man or com¬ 
pany can be infallible in judgment, but they, at least, can be 
sincere and honest in their recommendations to customers, and 
if some time they should make a mistake, they at least can 
sleep soundly with the conviction they were sincere with their 
customers and with themselves. The factor of error can be 
reduced to minimum by utilizing one hundred per cent of effort 
and capitalizing your judgment based on experience and con¬ 
science. 

Woman Salesman Among Farmers. By Helen Rose Pege- 
low. 

The farmers are a friendly, sociable class. I greatly enjoy 
my work with them, even if I do not sell any insurance. They 
are friends who can always be counted upon. When we go out 
for a day’s work in the country, we start as early as possible, 
for there are many miles to be covered. We take a certain 
territory, get a line on how much insurance the farmers carry, 
how much they are in debt, the size of their families and the 

196 


WORKING METHODS 


ages of their children. It is easier to persuade a man with a 
family of little children than a man whose family is grown 
and whose boys and girls are able to take care of themselves. 
We drive in and visit with the family, for I like to become better 
acquainted with the women. Then we ask for the man of the 
house. I have been in every place on the farm excepting the 
hayloft. I have never sold a policy there, but I have walked 
over ploughed fields, climbed fences, admired tractors, w 7 alked 
a mile through a cornfield during husking, attended threshing, 
broom corn cutting and, last but not least, country dances, where 
I am always an invited guest. That is the greatest place to get 
a line on the young men. 

It takes time. You cannot rush in and close the business as 
you would in an office. It has to come about gradually. At 
one place I played the piano all evening; my prospect played 
the violin. I had almost given up hope when he said: “How 
much would $5,000 cost for me and my wife?” He signed the 
application and the next week came in and asked me for an 
additional $5,000. I have sold 1 a number of contracts to women 
living in the country, many of them widows. They greatly 
appreciate their insurance and always keep it up. Country school 
teachers receive good salaries and are also good prospects. 

Successful Career on Evening Calls. By R. L. Parks. 

Don’t lose track of the small cases. If you will have evening 
appointments each week day evening, and keep them, your busi¬ 
ness will increase 50 per cent. There is no pleasanter or easier 
way to sell insurance than to get into the home and visit with 
the prospect. This will lead to from one to three additional 
cases in each home that you would not have known about except 
for this visit. The big writers use their brains and their feet. 
In my 20 years ending this year I have built up a business 
structure of 1,800 living policyholders, an average of about 90 
per year, but in my very first year I paid for 117 cases, which 
should encourage those who are writing business now, for it is 
vastly easier to write life insurance in these days than it was 
20 years ago. I am sure the new agent will be encouraged in 
his work when he realizes that it is possible for him in 20 
years by upright practices to construct a business plant of 1,800 
friendly customers, each of whom, if approached and handled 

197 


SALES METHODS 


tactfully and properly, is glad to throw business in the sales¬ 
man's way. Small cases and evening visits have put many a 
man on easy street and they have done a great deal for me. 

Notes on the Interview. By L. G. Saunders. 

We should all get the daily habit of systematizing our work. 
Carry a little pad in your pocket and, after an interview with 
your prospect, make sure that you write down the salient points 
in the interview before you see your next prospect. You will 
be surprised in a month’s time how much you know of your 
prospect, while if you trust your knowledge to your memory 
only, you will find that memory is a bad servant sometimes. You 
want to realize that an interview is a vital part of your work, 
while to the prospect it is merely a cog in his day’s experience. 
If you can go back at your prospect with a real summary of 
your first interview, you not only surprise him with your 
efficiency, but also gain his confidence in your ability to serve 
him. 

Mailing Literature to Prospects. By F. L. Conklin. 

Do you know that properly used your sales will be increased 
from 10 to 30 per cent by mailing this material to your prospect 
in advance of your canvass, thereby placing his mind in a 
more receptive mood and that when you call personally he will 
be in a position to more quickly visualize your arguments. 
They pave the way for your introduction and you do not come 
to him altogether a stranger. He is less skeptical and suspicious 
and is not unconsciously combating every statement and so busy 
thinking up denials that he cannot realize the value of the 
proposition being placed before him. 

All of this literature will not be read but this does not imply 
that it does not have its effect. At the time of your call he will 
remember the circulars and pamphlets he has received even if 
he has not read them carefully. If he has gone as far as the 
caption or the first sentence it has made a good impression. 
He will remember, not consciously perhaps, but it will cause 
him to say to himself, “I have heard of that organization,” 
“I should have more life insurance,” and thus you have planted 
a germ of thought which should grow and make it less difficult 
when it comes to your canvass. 

Literature is a poor closer but a mighty good opener; use it 

198 


WORKING METHODS 


to open men’s minds and allow it to work in advance, so that 
in calling upon a prospect all of the time may be spent on a 
partially interested and educated prospect, and through its use 
you cannot overlook the additional opportunities that are yours 
provided you work hand in hand with the advertising selling 
system. 

Another interesting angle in connection with the mailing of 
this pre-canvass literature and which from trial also I can 
recommend involves a rule of psychology not generally recog¬ 
nized. Some statistician conversant with sales has made the 
statement that 85 per cent of sales are either made to women, 
for women, or as a direct result of women’s influence. As the 
greater proportion of our life insurance is taken out to protect 
women and children and as a woman knows just how she would 
feel if she were left alone in the world with responsibilities and 
little cash and as women largely decide the question of whether 
life insurance should be carried, a greater appeal in the use of 
this advertising would result if it should come to the attention 
of the wife of the household. 

It is the capitalization of this fact used in connection with 
another medium known as male curiosity, suggested in the fol¬ 
lowing plan. Address your enclosures in plain, sealed envelopes 
to the wife and through this means you will be killing two birds 
with one stone as the man receiving the letter addressed to his 
wife and which appears to be a strietly personal one, will do 
one of two things, either open it or fight his curiosity and wait 
the chance to see what it contains after his wife has gone over 
it and in this way you secure the attention of both. 

Thorough and to the Point. By Marshall Butters. 

How thorough are you? Just so far you will be successful. 
Would you hire yourself? That’s the test. If you were look¬ 
ing for a good man to sell life insurance would you hire your¬ 
self? 

It takes two weeks to go through the Mayo brothers’ clinic. 
Thorough? I’ll say they’re thorough. Suppose you broke your 
leg and the doctor who was called just patched it up, told you 
to go on home and that it would be all right in the morning. 
What would you think of him? Suppose you went to a dentist 
to have your teeth fixed up and he fussed around with two or 

199 


SALES METHODS 


three of them, guessed you’d get along now and held out his 
hand for $10 or $15. Think you’d go to him again? Well, 
that’s the way a lot of insurance is sold. 

Every day you can get a new idea if you're looking for it. 
An accident insurance man I know spreads open the sample 
policy he carries and shows the prospect the list of operations 
for which a fee is paid in addition to the weekly indemnity. 

“Just look at all the things that can happen you,” he says and 

the prospect wakes up. 

You must paint a picture for the potential buyer. You can’t 
sell insurance by quoting a rate on a slip of paper and shoving 

it under his door. Talk about being full of pep! Believe me, 

you have to be also full of point. 

Taking Advantage of an Opportunity. By Frank H. Wil¬ 
liams. 

A man in my city aged 36 years, who had a wife and two 
children, died unexpectedly three weeks after securing a $10,000 
life insurance contract. He was a well known, genial individual. 
His wife was prominent socially. His death was very generally 
talked about and the fact of his recent purchase of the insurance 
was commented on in all the papers. After his death his wife 
said that the only thing he left her was the $10,000 insurance; 
that if it hadn’t been for that, she didn’t know what she w r ould 
have done. This statement of his wife’s became a very gen¬ 
eral topic of gossip among the leading people of the city. I 
utilized this statement of his wife's in all my talks with young 
business men of just about this man’s age. I drove home the 
fact that they, too, might die at any moment. I emphasized 
the need of mothers of about the age of his wife, for some 
sort of a definite income which w r ould not be so small that they 
would be forced to neglect the care of their children while 
going out to work for their livelihood. And I drove home the 
point that men who carried contracts of this size "were freed 
from a great burden of -worry. They knew 7 that, no matter 
w r hat happened, they had provided a good protection for their 
families and, consequently, they could devote their entire time 
and thought to boosting their business without fretting and 
worrying over what might happen if they should die. And I 
must say that with this as a talking point I have been exceed- 

200 




WORKING METHODS 


ingly successful in selling a number of $10,000 policies recently 
and in bringing up the lines of others to the $10,000 mark. 

My Methods. By F. J. Fleming. 

1. Getting a Hearing. Be prepared for indifference or positive 
objection on the part of the prospective purchaser. 

2. Winning Respect. Next comes lightning-like decision on 
the part of the salesman as to how best to remove this opposition. 
Attention must be secured in some personal way, and interest 
aroused. 

3. Making Pleasing Impressions. There is no middle ground 
for the salesman. Everything he says or does—his clothes, man¬ 
ner, cast of countenance, etc., either attracts or repels the pur¬ 
chaser. 

4. Getting Control. Get a true measure of the purchaser’s 
mind. Selling insurance is not selling something tangible—it is 
putting into the purchaser’s mind certain thoughts and making 
those thoughts stick until they belong to and become a part of the 
applicant and produce favorable action. It is necessary, there¬ 
fore to find out how the mind of the purchaser works and how 
it can be most easily influenced. 

5. Using the Senses. Ideas reach the brain through the senses 
—eyes, ears, fingers, etc.,—therefore, the more of these telegraph 
wires adroitly employed the easier the sale and the more quickly 
consummated. 

6. Grafting the Argument. Fit the insurance to the prospective 
purchaser’s needs. Connect up in some forceful way the object 
to be accomplished with the past and the present ideas or ideals 
in the purchaser’s mind, and thus meet him on his own ground. 

7. Clinching the Sale. The salesman’s sole object is to pro¬ 
duce a definite resolution to buy in the mind of the prospective 
purchaser. When this has been accomplished no time should be 
lost in tactfully getting the signature on the dotted line. Many 
a sale has been lost at the crucial point by allowing some trifling 
thing to distract the attention or cause a postponement. 

8. It is very essential that you know and understand the con¬ 
tract you are selling and be able to answer all questions asked 
you in regard to the same. You ought to know and understand 
the other fellow's contract that is giving you the greatest corn- 

201 


SALES METHODS 


petition, and be able to make a true and honest comparison of 
each policy when necessary. 

Immediate Medical Examination. By George R. Craft. 

At the moment that any man signs an application he is in the 
right frame of mind to see the examiner. An hour afterward he 
lias probably lost some of the interest and enthusiasm that 
prompted him to sign. He is no longer under the influence of 
your presence. He is alone and free to change his mind. Every 
hour and every day adds to the uncertainty and danger of out¬ 
side or inside influences. A sober second thought has possibly 
taken possession and he begins arguing with himself that he can¬ 
not afford it at this time. He wavers and wabbles and finally 
convinces himself that it’s ‘'all off.” Later on, when the sales¬ 
man or doctor calls him up he has entirely changed his mind and 
he is fully prepared to offer the most plausible excuses. 

Every insurance man who reads this article will recall instances 
in his own experience that justify the above statements. If there 
existed a plan by which all of the facts and figures could be 
assembled showing the total losses to insurance men from failure 
to secure examinations, the information would be startling; even 
appalling. 

The writer feels qualified to advise in this important matter for 
he has passed through it all and long ago learned the lesson 
through experience. For many years he has made it a practice 
to secure an immediate examination whenever possible and he 
has seldom attempted to write further business until the ex¬ 
amination was completed or definitely arranged covering the last 
application written. The result is that the writer has seldom 
failed to secure prompt examinations. In many cases, without 
consulting the applicant, the writer has stepped to the telephone 
and called the examiner the moment the application was signed. 
The applicant gains the impression that this is the regular pro¬ 
cedure and seldom objects. The salesman dominates the situation 
and the applicant respects him for it. 

Of course, the salesman must be a gentleman and use judg¬ 
ment. He must avoid anything and everything that savors of 
bull-dozing. It must be done in a matter of fact manner and 
- with perfect respect and gentility. 

202 


WORKING METHODS 


If, for any reason, the applicant cannot meet the examiner 
then and there, a definite appointment should be made for the 
examination at the earliest possible moment, and the salesman 
should see that appointments are kept. By all means do not 
allow him time to cool oft. Bear in mind that the transaction is 
not finished until it is finished. 

Real Opportunities. By Frank H. Sykes. 

It was in a town up near the Canadian line, in midwinter. The 
whole town was snowbound. Most of the automobile agents 
hugged the stove and waited for the weather to settle. One 
agent, however, figured that the storm was a God-sent oppor¬ 
tunity. He put on his snow shoes and made a long tour of calls. 
Everybody was in, everybody was glad to talk. He had the whole 
field to himself and he brought home some orders. 

A wholesale grocery salesman who works Northern Michigan 
says that some of his best orders are those he takes on rainy 
days. Nothing pleases him more than rain because he knows it 
will keep the housewives at home and the grocer will be able to 
give him undivided attention. Moreover, he finds that the 
weather affects his competitors about the same as it does the 
housewives. 

Watching office buildings to get a line on the bookkeepers who 
are working evenings, is the rather unique method of an adding 
machine salesman, who says that he usually finds these book¬ 
keepers responsive and by dropping in evenings the two have the 
whole office to themselves. 

Waiting for a Favorable Time. By Frank H. Sykes. 

There was once a man—friend of ours, in fact—who wrote a 
brilliant daily column for a newspaper. It was due to go to the 
composing room at 6 p. m. His time was his own; he chose his 
own subjects; he could write three days’ material ahead if he 
wanted to; he was a veritable mine of reminiscence and good 
material right in himself; when started on an article the interest¬ 
ing stuff just flowed from his pen. It was easy money and lots 

of it. 

But day after day the composing room used to wait anywhere 
from ten minutes to two hours for his copy. He just couldnt 

203 


SALES MET HODS 


get started to write until the last possible moment and then some. 
After having fooled around all day long giving himself reasons 
why he was not in the mood, why he had not thought out his 
plan completely, why the subject at hand required extended 
thought, he would take an entirely new subject at 5 p. m. and 
without any thought at all would reel out a column of fine 
material by six. 

He told all his friends that he could not write any other way. 
He honestly believed that if he got started at ten in the morning 
his work would be no good. He never for a moment faced the 
fact that if the column was due at eleven he would be starting 
somewhere about ten and asserting manfully that he couldn’t 
write in the afternoon. 

He was lazy, you say. Not at all. Although he had a college 
degree and was one of the most brilliant men in a city full of 
brilliant men, he was carrying a rabbit’s foot—just like the il¬ 
literate and superstitious mountaineer who will not go into a 
card game or a coon hunt without that potent aid to efficiency. 

The psychologist would explain all this if we had time to 
listen. He would talk about pet delusions and fixed ideas and 
such like. In plain words, however, a great many of us—in the 
language of the office boy—like to “kid ourselves.” We avoid 
decisions and like to put off things but we do not like to admit 
our weakness; so we say we never could do this or that on a 
rainy day, that we can’t talk to a prospect unless we feel up to 
the mark. 

All the time it is not so. Our brain is up to the mark; the 
prospect is as reasonable and as approachable a man as he will 
ever be; the weather isn’t a factor at all. The only thing that 
isn’t up to the mark is our resolution and our energy. So we 
say that we are waiting for a favorable opportunity when the 
plain truth is that we are just bumming around. 

Just bumming around, friend. Harsh words, but true. We 
won’t admit them about ourselves, only about the other fellow 
who is lingering on the same corner. We tell ourselves that we 
are skillfully planning our campaign, that we are selecting the 
right moment, that the time is not propitious, that we haven't our 
rabbit’s foot with us. 

Throw away that rabbit's foot! Or, if you must have one, let 

204 


WORKING METHODS 


it be a schedule card for your day and week, or a sheaf of 
appointments from service leads. A full day’s work along a list 
of prospects has been known to bring luck—if you keep going. 
But don't ‘“kid yourself.” Columbus discovered America on a 
Friday; but the Greeks almost lost a great battle to Persia be¬ 
cause their Spartan troops—the best of ancient times—would not 
march until the full of the moon assured good luck. 

Don’t Be the Bashful Pig. By J. II. LaSance. 

That ancient jibe about the insurance agent's “nerve” rests on 
very slight foundation. For one agent who errs on the side of 
boldness, we venture to say that there are dozens who find them¬ 
selves handicapped every day by undue timidity and backward¬ 
ness. 

How many are the defeats that agents encounter for lack of 
proper audacity and self-confidence! What stories might be 
told! Of agents who have sought for weeks to secure an inter¬ 
view with a prospective client, and whose nerve failed them when 
the opportunity at last arrived. Of agents who have spent their 
abilities writing $1,000 applications all their lives, because they 
lacked the enterprise and confidence that might have induced 
them to solicit insurance from the great captains of industry and 
commerce. Of agents who have missed big opportunities be¬ 
cause they were afraid to encounter a rebuff. Of agents who 
have repeatedly seen some audacious rival capture the prospect 
whom they have been timidly “keeping in view” for years. 

There is not much chance of success, or at any rate no chance 
of much success, for the insurance agent who is thus under the 
tyranny of fear. There is no room for bashfulness in the insur¬ 
ance profession. As the homely proverb says: “A bashful pig 
never grows fat.” The agent when he approaches a prospect 
must remember that he is not begging a favor or asking a loan. 
It is a straight business proposition that he is presenting. At 
the worst, his client can only refuse. And his refusal is far less 
likely to be uttered if the agent presents his business in a manly, 
straightforward way with no unnecessary diffidence or cringing. 
You are not nearly so apt to offend your client by assuming too 
aggressive an attitude, as you are to disgust him by undue humil¬ 
ity or deference. All the world admires a fighter—even his 

205 


SALES METHODS 


opponent respects him; but nobody is ever much impressed by the 
person who betrays timidity in all he says and does. 

Use the Mortality Table. By Grenville Howard. 

Find the greatest argument for life insurance in the American 
Experience Table of Mortality. It isn’t so much how long you 
have lived, as how long you may live. How many more years 
remain to me for myself and family in which I must accomplish 
all that I expect or want to accomplish? And this takes no ac¬ 
count of sudden illness, accidents or wholly and permanently in¬ 
capacitating diseases that may come to me as an individual. For 
instance, a man has lived 35 years, but this is of little conse¬ 
quence; his “expectation” is only 31.78 years more. A man of 
40 has less than 29 years to live, according to the American Ex¬ 
perience Table of Mortality. A man of 45, only 24.54 years more. 
A man of 50 only 20.91, while at 55 the implacable statistics give 
a worker only 17.40 years of life in which to arrange his earthly 
affairs. You may be the exception—but who knows? 

The mortality table of a life insurance company is about the 
most intimately interesting set of figures a man can look upon 
next to his bank balance. Strange, is it not, that a man will bet 
his last dollar on living, fail to take account of accidents, sick¬ 
ness, and what world calls “hard luck,” and forget sometimes to 
provide against his death? He knows that taxes are sure, and he 
knows that death is just as certain. Fie prepares for his taxes 
because he has to, while he lets his widow and children shift for 
themselves. Not because of lack of interest. It is the great 
human fault—procrastination. There is one thing that a man 
cannot put off. Show him the American Experience Table of 
Mortality and he’ll understand what it is. 

Talk Fifty Per Cent Less Than Your Prospect. By Clifford 

Sloan. 

My neighbor is a successful man in that he is worth a consid¬ 
erable amount and is respected by all his friends. Fie is field 
manager of a large insurance company. He told me of his start 
as a salesman. 

“I worked for dad, and after putting in a year as clerk he 
started me out on the road. I’ll never forget the morning I 

206 


WORKING METHODS 


walked into his private office, grip in hand, to say good-bye as I 
started out on my first trip. Dad was a man of few words and 
a master builder of business. He wrote something on a piece of 
paper and handed it to me. And he told me to read it every 
morning before I started the day’s work. Then he wished me 
luck, shook hands, and off I went.” 

My neighbor reached into his pocketbook for a slip of memo¬ 
randum paper. It was yellow with age. It was soiled and torn 
from many foldings and tmfoldings. He held it in his hand for 
a minute. 

“And you know,” he said, “I wish I could give this message to 
every man who really wants to be a salesman.” 

I unfolded it and stepped to the light. 

“Talk fifty per cent, less than your prospect.” 

My neighbor is, or was, a life insurance salesman. Now he 
tells others how to do it. 

My idea of a life insurance salesman is one who speeds along, 
hitting on all six, while you get a few words like “endowment,” 
“widow,” “your widow,” “benefits,” “dividends,” and the like, 
until, out of breath, he makes a pause. 

My neighbor sold, or did sell, life insurance and he has made a 
big success of it. His income is $25,000 a year. And his motto 
has been: “Talk fifty per cent, less than your prospect.” 

Value of the Quota. By M. J. Dillon. 

Careful records were kept of the work of five life insurance 
men over a period of six years. During the first three years 
there were no quotas. During the last three they were on a 
quota plan. The first man without a quota increased his business 
15 per cent, during the first three years and 150 per cent, during 
the last three years; the second man stood still without a quota 
and jumped 50 per cent, with it; the third man has a 10 per 
cent, loss during his non-quota years, as compared with previous 
years and gained 15 per cent, under a quota; the fourth man 
stood still without a quota and made a 35 per cent, gain under 
quota stimulus; the fifth man gained 400 per cent, under a quota, 
as compared with his gain without a quota. 

It should be one application a week. 

1 One application, and one week, are the units, because they 

20 7 


SALES METHODS 


are the smallest divisions into which it is practicable to divide a 
salesman’s time and his results. 

2. Because of the experience of “One a Week,” agencies all 
over the country prove that the men who consecrate themselves 
to the work of producing at least one application a week are able 
to make the quota. 

The result from weekly production determinations go far be¬ 
yond “One a Week” production. 

1. When men get into the habit of weekly production they so 
program their work in advance that they begin to work in a sys¬ 
tem that enables them eventually to produce from two to five 
applications a week. 

2. They have their work so well in hand that under stress of a 
special campaign or incentive there is no limit to the number of 
applications they can write each week and for a stretch of four 
and five weeks at a time. 

3. The influence of consecration so affects their entire lives 
that life itself becomes a bigger, finer thing. 

Many things enter into an organized life. Here are elements 
that are vital to the success of weekly production: 

1. Mental attitude. 

2. Health. 

3. Study hour each day. 

4. Definite minimum for field hours. 

5. A time record that can be analyzed. 

Someone has said: “The man who wins on weekly production 
is the man who wins the prizes.” And that is a true saying and 
one that opens a vision for each and every one of us to be guided 
by. 

Where Do You Eat Your Lunch? By W. T. Grant. 

We have recently been asking this question of a number of our 
salesmen. Their replies have been interesting but not surprising 
to us. Perhaps you will not be surprised when we tell you that 
almost without exception those men who are looked upon as our 
consistent leaders tell us that they get their lunch either at a 
quick lunch counter or at a soda fountain in a drug store and 
that they pay anywhere from 15 cents, the price of a malted milk, 
to 25 cents, the price of a sandwich and a glass of milk or a 
piece of pie. 


208 


WORKING METHODS 


Tnose who may be depended on to finish in the second or third 
division are the ones who have written me that they get their 
lunch at American plan hotels, paying from 50 cents up to 75 
cents for them. 

Do you suppose that the difference in the habits of these two 
classes of salesmen has anything to do with the difference in the 
results? 

In our opinion there isn’t any doubt about it and there are 
two special reasons upon which we base our opinion. 

First, a good salesman cannot sit down to a heavy meal in the 
middle of the day without impairing his efficiency during the en¬ 
tire afternoon, lie cannot work with that aggressiveness and 
energy so necessary if he expects to meet and overcome the de¬ 
fensive arguments of his prospects. This is just plain common 
sense—there isn’t any other side to it. 

In the second place, in the ordinary sized towns there are cer¬ 
tain classes of business or professional men who can be seen to 
better advantage during the noon hour than at any other time 
during the day. The man who goes to the hotel and spends an 
hour or more at his lunch is sacrificing his best opportunity to 
call upon those particular individuals. 

If you are one of those who have been making the serious mis¬ 
take heretofore of eating a heavy lunch, taking away your pep 
and energy during at least half of your working hours and also 
of depriving you of the chance of calling upon a certain percent¬ 
age of your prospects under the most favorable circumstances, 
adopt the plan followed by our big producers and you will be 
surprised at the immediate improvement in your own results. 

Cutting Down Industrial Arrears. By William Colvin. 

1 have been successful in carrying low arrears on my debit by 
using the following methods: 

First, in writing applications, I describe the contract accurately 
and in easily understood terms, and impress upon the applicant 
the necessity for paying the premium regularly and promptly. I 
try to collect well when the application is written, and when I 
call to deliver the policy, I ask for further collection. I find it 
very helpful as a means of gaining the good will of my policy¬ 
holders to make plain to them the protection they have secured 
14 209 


SALES METHODS 


when I place the new business. In this way we become good 
friends. 

Second, my aim is to gain the confidence of the insured, so 
that through them I may secure further prospects. The more we 
thus strengthen our friendship with our policy-holders, the better 
we conserve the debit. 

Third, the best time to save a lapse is when the insured fails 
to pay at the accustomed time, whether the premiums are in 
arrears or not. I begin to avoid a lapse, even though the business 
is paid in advance, if the insured seems to be losing interest in 
his policy. If there is any difference in his attitude, I make more 
effort to save a lapse than I do to write new business. 

Fourth, the way to collect advance payments is to ask for them. 
When a policyholder asks how much he owes, I look him in the 
face and state the amount required to pay up insurance properly. 
I do not say how many weeks he is in arrears, but name the 
amount of money due. I study the case before I reach the home 
so that I may be able to tell the amount due without having to 
refer to my collection book. 

Whenever good business fails to pay, I let the holder know in 
a pleasant way of my disappointment. 

Fifth, when a premium becomes in arrears, I make a study of 
that specific case, try to find the real cause, and apply the remedy 
that best suits. I impress the insured very firmly with the fact 
that insurance protection in a home is a necessity, and that keep¬ 
ing the policy in force is for the benefit of himself and his fam¬ 
ily, and only incidentally for the company’s benefit or mine. 

Love of Salesmanship. By Charles F. Dickinson. 

Take some of our greatest men, for instance, Carnegie, before 
he sold out the steel trust. He was a great man because he could 
sell steel rails. He went to Europe and sold tremendous quanti¬ 
ties of steel rails and he was placed at the head of the institution. 

When young men ask me as to vrhat line of work they are go¬ 
ing to take up I advise them to pick out the kind of business they 
like and then take the sales end of it, because if you can produce, 
if you can go out into the world and create business, you can 
get the money and you are always in demand. You are never 
idle. Take the selling of legal reserve insurance. They used to 
feel if a person could sell $100,000 or $200,000 or $300,000 worth 

210 


WORKING METHODS 


of insurance a year that was about the limit, but now along comes 
a Russian Jew doing a business of fifteen million dollars a year. 
It just shows the possibility of the sales end, if you adopt a cer¬ 
tain form of working, map out your plan and then follow it. His 
plan, I understand, has been to go after the big fellows, of course, 
and to get them on large policies, but he also writes a great deal 
on small policies. They say he is a bunch of nerves and he sells 
for the love of selling, not for the remuneration that is in it. 
That, of course, will follow. 

I can say from my own experience that I like the remunera¬ 
tion; I don’t object to that, but still, as I look over my experience 
I can see the great desire was to sell the goods, to turn the trick. 
That came really before the thought of making money, it was to 
turn the trick and sell the goods. I think the majority of sales¬ 
men have that same instinct. 

Interview 100 Men a Month. By Frank E. Mowrey. 

“Seeing 100 men per month and interviewing them intelligently, 
is bound to produce results far beyond the expectation of the 
average salesman here today. In order to interview this number 
of people per month, means work, and work spells success. It 
means we cannot wait until the last few days in the month and 
then get out and hustle, but it requires us to see and interview 
people on every working day, and if we follow this plan or sys¬ 
tem of working, we are bound to accumulate an unusually large 
number of good prospects to call upon at some future date, 
thereby keeping ourselves supplied with a good list of prospects 
that we can call upon at future time, and never be in the position 
of wondering, ‘Where shall I go, and who shall I see today?’ A 
glance at the cards will tell you where to go. There will be 
plenty, and all as a result of our 100 interviews per month, and 
our good working list will never become exhausted, but continue 
to grow, and grow if we will follow this plan of seeing 100 peo¬ 
ple per month. If this plan is followed day after day, conscien¬ 
tiously, the number of sales made will correspondingly increase 
as has your prospect list, for the law of average in sales will 
work out for us just as sure as two and two are four.” 

How Clark Made a Day of It. By E. C. Budlong. 

The business of selling insurance as a profession offers more 

211 


SALES METHODS 


pitfalls and opportunities for waste of time than any line I 
know of, and many are the victims. Take Clark, for instance, a 
well meaning capable chap but an awful time waster. 

I rode three hundred miles to see Clark at his urgent request, 
arriving in his city at 6:30 a. m. At 8:30 I knocked at his office 
door—“Nobody home.” Again I called at 9:15, 10 and 10:30. 
Then I took a taxicab and went to his apartment. The old colored 
janitor grinned and said: “I guess Mr. and Mrs. Clark are not 
up yet—they ginerally ‘lay rather late.’ Not wishing to find Mrs. 
Clark in curl papers I returned to the hotel and about lunch 
time Clark came strolling over to the corner of the writing room 
where I was sitting. There was a very obvious expression of 
disappointment on his face. Later he admitted that he expected 
to see a big fine-looking chap with a Prince Albert coat, white 
vest and silk hat, but that is neither here nor there. He had been 
out to a party the night before and the baby had colic so he 
didn’t get much sleep. 

Now this is a sample of a day’s work with Clark. He gets to 
the office about 9:30 and fumes and fusses around an hour be¬ 
cause the mail is late. He reads the sporting news in the morn¬ 
ing paper and then fusses some more because a man who prom¬ 
ised to call and pay a premium on the way to lunch did not 
come. This delay causes Clark to miss the date he had made 
with the foreman at the ice plant for sharp noon. 

He goes to lunch down the street and then as it is nearly two 
o’clock stops in at Joe’s Stncke House for a cigar and as Dr. 
Jackson upstairs in the same building told him to call at 2 p. m., 
lie indulges in a game of Kelly with a few friends. To protect 
his investment he had to stay in a little longer than he intended 
but anyway the kittie paid him $2.00 which is not so bad, but Dr. 
Jackson was just getting into his sedan when Clark came out of 
the pool hall. He goes back to the office and finds under the 
door a card from the man who was to call on the way home say¬ 
ing he had stopped on the way back to work instead, also a letter 
from the Company returning a C. O. D. application upon which 
he had neglected to get the age and weight. Charity forbids me 
to quote his remarks as he guesses at both answers and mails it 
back, but I am quite sure it was a suggestion that the Secretary 
could have guessed if he wanted to. The real estate man across 
the hall drops in and a discussion about various automobiles 

212 


WORKING METHODS 


takes a half hour more and Clark remembers he forgot to make 
his bank deposit It looks like rain so Clark calls it a day at 4:30 
and goes home in rather a poor frame of mind and when friend 
wife asks him what luck for the day he says—well you know 
what he said. 

After supper they go to a movie and just at the most exciting 
moment Clark remembers that this was the evening he was to 
see the engineer at the electric light company—but some other 
night will do just as well. 

Of course now and then Clark hits pay dirt and sends in busi¬ 
ness every day for a week, but presently he slumps again and 
curses the town, wants to get out, thinks he should have a salary 
—writes the home office he could write farmers if he had a car. 
In the end he goes back to work in a store on a salary and mind 
you he makes a good, faithful worker under a time clock and a 
pay envelope. 

What’s the matter with Clark? I’ll tell you. He doesn’t know 
the value of time or how to use it. His failure keeps other men 
from going into the business. 

In the meantime Brown in the next county seat has worked his 
way into the $10,000 Club, buys a home and an automobile and 
has money in the bank. Of the two men anyone would pick Clark 
as the winner, but he is not a good business man and Brown is. 

This story of Clark and Brown is the story of thousands of 
insurance salesmen in this great and prosperous country of ours. 

Oh Gee! Oh Gosh! It isn’t the town or the people in the 
town. It’s the man with a backbone and a determination to get 
the money and he gets it because he goes after it tooth and nail, 
hammer and tongs, early and late. 

In every man there is a trace of Clark and Brown, and like 
Jeckyl and Hyde, one must conquer in the end. Am I not right? 
What is your name? 

A • 

Making Daily Reports. By H. O. Wilhelm. 

When it comes to “Keeping Records as a Help to Selling” 
there are a number of different kinds of records which are es¬ 
sential. In my judgment, the most important of all is the rec¬ 
ord one keeps of himself. 

You, no doubt, have seen these heat and cold recording ma¬ 
chines the point of which leaves a permanent red line as it 

213 


SALES METHODS 


travels. Oh! if we could only have a similar machine attached 
to us, telling how efficiently we were working. I am afraid many 
of us would have very little sleep as we studied this machine each 
night. 

The only reason on earth why a salesman does not want to 
furnish a daily or weekly report is because he has not made 
enough calls, or not closed as large a per cent, of those he called 
upon as he should. We may think of some real good excuses 
(not reasons) for not furnishing them, such as “I don’t need 
them” or “They are all right for the beginner,” etc. This is 
simply an alibi; the real reason is because you are ashamed of 
the report. Too much like the mirror—it shows too plainly what 
you are doing. 

When one is keeping an accurate record of all calls and amount 
of business written, it should be the aim, in addition to increas¬ 
ing the number of calls, to increase the percentage of business 
written for the number of calls made. In other words, by keep¬ 
ing a record of this kind you are working in the “light” instead 
of the “dark.” 

A habit I formed several years ago has been very valuable to 
me in many instances. I always do my figuring on the back of 
my prospect card. In this way I have not only a record of the 
prospect’s name, change of age, etc., but on the other side I have 
the figures I used when talking to him before. I have had many 
a man say to me, “I thought you had forgotten all about my case” 
when I have told him that I had something new I wanted to show 
him relating to that $100 per month monthly income policy we 
were talking about last July. 

Production in Farming Communities. By Robert M. Work. 

The sweetest fruit always hangs highest and if there are dif¬ 
ficulties in writing country business there are distinct advantages 
in securing it. Government statistics to the contrary notwith¬ 
standing, your country applicant enjoys better health, will live 
longer and pay you more than his city brother. His personal 
habits are usually above reproach, his family life, although 
strenuous, is contented and congenial. He may be slow in mak¬ 
ing up bis mind, but when once convinced he is not driven hither 
and thither with every wind of doctrine. Moreover when the 
head of the house, or may-hap. the tribe, is convinced that our 

214 




WORKING METHODS 


agent's policy is the one he wants, his wife, sons, brothers, sisters, 
nephews and nieces are as good as written. I frequently note 
in looking through the work of an agent in some small commun¬ 
ity that there will be a string of family names as long as a tele¬ 
phone directory. Success in this line is especially assured if we 
are lucky (?) enought to have a loss early in the game. I have 
in mind a certain small town where one of our agents drifted in 
and wrote a very few applications, the highest of which was 
$5,000.00, on a very healthy and exemplary young farmer. Con¬ 
trary to the tables of mortality this young fellow, carrying prob¬ 
ably more insurance than his banker or anybody else in the 
community, was taken down with typhoid fever, and died in less 
than a year after the issuance of the policy. The soliciting agent 
had long since abandoned this territory to write insurance in 
another part of the State, but on the heels of the prompt pay¬ 
ment of this loss he went back to the aforesaid community and 
in a period of six weeks wrote $100,000.00 of insurance in that 
immediate vicinity. 

Where References Are Valuable. By John L. Havlin. 

The references secured in each case written, in my estimation, 
furnish you with leads of great importance. You will find if an 
applicant gives you references he will be careful to select or 
pick out his best friends in order to have them speak a good word 
for him. When you take the Question blank, No. 4, and go to 
the references, the first introduction states: “Mr. Smith made 
application for life insurance in this company.” Then in para¬ 
graph No. 13: “Would you like information as to our plan for 
life insurance?” This question gives you a cue to get an inter¬ 
view that you could not have gotten in any other way. And the 
influence of the reference’s friend buying insurance in our com¬ 
pany will have a stronger effect on the reference than if you 
called on him “cold turkey.” 

I will give you a case just recently happened and show you 
the results which will bear out my argument as to references be¬ 
ing good prospects. I sold a baker $5,000 Life Paid-up at 70 on 
December 10, 1920, and secured three references from him. 

I sold two of the three references—one $5,000 and the other 
$10,000. The reference I sold $5,000 I am having an extra $5,000 
issued which I fully expect to deliver. 

215 


SALES METHODS 


Public Pays for Guidance. By J. C. Maginnis. 

P. T. Barnum's famous saying, concerning the credulity of the 
American public, has too often been misconstrued as an axiom 
instead of an advertising misstatement. The American public, or 
at least the great majority of our people, do not wish to be fooled, 
nor do they relish deceit; but, unfortunately, many of our people 
do permit and often require someone else to do their thinking for 
them. Therefore, where those who lead give serious thought to 
the problems of life and correct advice to the people, they should 
bestow the best they have as compensation for that leadership, 
for that correct thinking, for that straightforward advice. On 
the other hand, where the fool or demagogue, in the confidence 
of his ignorance or studied deceit, takes advantage of our credul¬ 
ity, he invariably receives a just punishment at the hands of an 
offended public. 

This line of reasoning is even more applicable to the various 
professions. A lawyer, to be successful, must think seriously and 
act wisely; a physician, to be successful, must study assiduously 
and diagnose accurately; a clergyman, to be successful must 
study diligently, think deeply and advise correctly. So you, Mr. 
Insurance Man, recognized as a member of our profession—re¬ 
ceiving your salary as one—and looked upon by your neighbors 
and the people of your community as a trustworthy representa¬ 
tive of a reliable life insurance company, are expected to advise 
your people correctly on all matters pertaining to life insurance. 
It is obvious, therefore, that you should have, at least, a rudi¬ 
mentary knowledge of the business, that perfect candor should 
characterize your dealings with your people, and that the re¬ 
sponsibilities incident to your profession should be understood, 
accepted and ably discharged. This, gentlemen of the field force, 
briefly sums up cur application of the word think. 

As to the innumberable schemes, so-called psychology, cunning 
plans—some of which border on chicanery—these may be dis¬ 
missed and instead of trying out those voluminous “prescrip¬ 
tions,” supposed to supply that alluring concoction guaranteeing 
success, one should consider every person within the range of 
his territory, visit each home in a professional way and with 
frankness and precision inquire as to the financial status and 
general condition of the prospect. 

A straightforward analysis will never be resented, if handled 

216 


WORKING METHODS 


in an intelligent manner. The family income, the mortgage on 
the home, the education of the children, the care of dependents, 
all should be given your courteous consideration; and, without 
muddling the minds of the prospects with incomprehensible in¬ 
surance terms and tongue-twisting policy names, give them plain 
advice in simple language, using the well-known terms and illus¬ 
trating the fundamental principles of life insurance. Talk pro¬ 
tection, show the cost, explain what policy values mean and how 
they protect and the policy. Let your prospect understand that 
you are not ignorant of the many ambiguous terms used and 
abused; that you are not partial to those “trimmings’' and “dec¬ 
orations” nor to indefinite explanations, and that your company 
officials insist upon selling life insurance on its merits, with defi¬ 
nite rates and terms, and with due respect and most kindly ex¬ 
pression towards all other competitors. You are interested only 
in discharging your duty as a representative of the life insur¬ 
ance profession, and as a man whose advice is worthy of con¬ 
sideration. 


217 


CHAPTER XIV 


ADDITIONAL SERVICE 

Future of Your Young Men Clients. Author unknown. 

Back in 1890— 

‘‘The world’s most famous automobile manufacturer was 
working in a bicycle shop, 

“A millionaire hotel owner was hopping bells, 

“America’s steel king was stoking a blast furnace, 

“An international banker was firing a locomotive, 

“A president of the United States was running a printing 
press, 

“A railroad president was pounding a telegraph key.” 

That's an interesting list from whatever slant you look at it, 
but the particular slant we have in mind is this: Suppose you 
had interested one of these men in life insurance just at the 
time lie had his foot on the first rung of the ladder, and suppose 
he had come to the conclusion that you knew life insurance 
and were to be relied upon. Just think what this would have 
meant to you. Not only in the insurance this particular man 
would have taken himself, but the leads that would have come 
out of it. 

And then when you go out to canvass tomorrow treat each 
young man whom you interview as if he were one of these 
famous men in the making. Give him the bets you are capable 
of and then don’t lose sight of him. Go and see him again and 
again, build up in his mind the idea of a life insurance program. 
Perhaps he will begin to grow fast. Keep one step ahead of 
him as far as life insurance is concerned. 

You can’t tell just which of the young men you canvass to¬ 
morrow are going to become famous for their success. That 
is true. But if you treat each of these men as though he were 
a sure winner and then never lose sight of him, you may rest 
assured that you are losing no chances. 

This Plan Helps Later. By E. F. Colborn. 

It is a mistake to let a prospect or a new member assume that 

218 


ADDITIONAL SERVICE 


it is an easy matter to get life insurance. That assumption on 
the part of our prospects is perhaps the chief explanation of 
their procrastination in applying for insurance; let us endeavor 
to break it down at every opportunity. A word of sincere con¬ 
gratulation to the new policy-holder, accompanied by a con¬ 
vincing remark as to the frequency of rejections and the danger 
of becoming uninsurable, is calculated to make him consider 
more favorably the question of increasing his life insurance 
while he can get it, when you bring the matter up later in the 
interview. 

A Talk When Delivering the Contract. By E. F. Colborn. 

If salesmen would be real business-builders rather than mere 
commission-chasers, let them give careful consideration to the 
delivery of the contract. A point frequently overlooked is that 
the delivery is an integral part of the selling process—yes, this 
remains true even though the application may have been pre¬ 
paid. A salesman has not completed the sale until the customer 
is in possession of his purchase and is pleased and satisfied with 
the goods. From the business-building standpoint, a contract 
has not been properly sold until it has been properly delivered. 

It would unquestionably be an excellent thing if every sales¬ 
man had definitely in mind an outline of a delivery “talk,”— 
carefully constructed along certain definite lines. I would sug¬ 
gest that this habitual delivery talk include: 

The congratulation of the new member upon having passed 
an excellent examination, with reference to the fact that not 
everyone can get life insurance. 

A concise, cogent, enthusiastic explanation of the leading pro¬ 
visions of the contract to the end of creating understanding and 
appreciation in the mind of the insured. 

A discussion of plans for the gradual creation of his ultimate 
life insurance estate and of methods for its administration. 

Where the client’s financial circumstances seem to justify it, 
an effort to persuade him to carry forward his life insurance 
program a step farther at once by securing additional insurance 
on the basis of his recent examination. 

Finally, a request for the names of prospective members—thus 
stimulating his latent loyalty into active expression. 

Any fieldman who is not using a carefully thought out deliv- 

219 


SALES METHODS 


ery talk, tested and tempered by experience, can very easily 
increase his efficiency and his income by preparing a talk on the 
basis of the above outline, to be used in every delivery—with 
tact and discretion, of course, and modified to meet particular 
cases. 

The delivery of a contract affords you a peculiarly favorable 
opportunity to lead your client to a broader view of life insur¬ 
ance and a larger appreciation of its proper place in his general 
economic program. He has already purchased a contract from 
you and is consequently no longer on the defensive. He is not 
quite so likely to regard you as a propagandist as he is when 
you are directly trying to get an application from him. His bars 
are down and he is more open-minded. Here, then, is an excel¬ 
lent opportunity to sell him the idea of making plans toward the 
creation of a definite life insurance estate—for himself in his 
old age, for his dependents in the event of his premature death. 

Fitting the Contract to the Buyer. By Howard Cox. 

In fitting the contract to your client, the plan is not the only 
thing to be considered. The method of settlement is often much 
more important. Many large producers are selling the method 
of settlement and the policy is merely a necessary adjunct. We 
will all be more successful and better fulfill our mission as life 
insurance salesmen, when we realize that what we have to sell 
is money properly distributed to dependents, not contracts. 

The salesman should know his contracts thoroughly—particu¬ 
larly that neglected section, known as settlement options. He 
should also understand the other options in the contract and see 
that they are understood by the purchaser. 

In fitting the contract to the buyer, it should harmonize as to 
plan and method of settlement with his other insurance in a 
definite life insurance program. If your client has no definite 
program or insurance estate, it will be to your advantage, as 
well as his, to arrange one for him. 

Some life insurance men have certain plans they sell specific 
ages. Very young men they sell the 20 year endowment plan; 
25-35 the 20 payment life; all others, the ordinary life. They 
do not stop to consider that long before the young man’s 20 
year endowment has matured, he has grown into the 20 payment 
life group, then into the ordinary life group. We must remem- 

220 


ADDITIONAL SERVICE 

ber that the young unmarried man will in time grow older and 
in all probability assume the responsibility of a wife and family. 
Consequently, the contract that we sell him now, should serve 
him then. Whether we choose for him a long term endowment 
or a life contract, it is good underwriting to distribute the pre¬ 
miums as thinly as possible over his earning years, and he should 
not be left with a liability in the form of premiums after he 
lias reached age 65. 

Combining Accident and Health with Life. By Robert New¬ 
man. 

I keep a record of all information pertaining to a policyholder 
and I get the information for these records from an accident 
and health application. Then when I go back to solicit the man 
on life insurance, all I have to do is get his signature. To every 
one of you I make this suggestion—produce at least one accident 
application a week and it will enable you to increase your life 
insurance production. 

Life insurance is predicated on the payment of premiums, 
which in turn depends on the earning power of the policyholder. 
The whole life insurance structure, so carefully reared for a 
customer by the experienced life agent, is based upon the ability 
of the client to pay premiums^ If accident or disease attacks 
that ability, the structure falls. 

So accident and health insurance does more than supplement 
life protection. It lies at the very foundation of it by insuring 
the income of the policyholder and assuring the payments which 
must be made to keep the life insurance in force. 

The function of the life insurance salesman is primarily one 
of service. The greater the service the salesman can render his 
client, the more perfectly he is fulfilling his function—and the 
greater are his earnings. The salesman has not been wholly 
true to his responsibility until he lias protected the life policy¬ 
holder's contracts with accident and health insurance. 

It works either way. The man who lias bought accident in¬ 
surance is half way sold for life insurance. And after a sales¬ 
man has developed a prospect to the point where lie will buy 
life, it is only one more easy step to place an accident policy 
also. 


221 


SALES METHODS 


Return Calls. By J. R. Macy. 

The placing of the contract is only the beginning. A back call 
on a policyholder in a great many cases will result in additional 
business. Make these at least once a year and make them as 
service calls. There are many ways you can approach a member 
on a call of this kind. One of the best is to ask him if there 
is any change we could make in his contract that would be to his 
advantage, such as change of beneficiary, change of payment or 
if he would like the double indemnity or disability rider inserted 
and if the latter, it is a fine opportunity for him to get out of 
paying the medical by applying for an additional contract. I 
firmly believe that, in this day and age, people will pay for serv¬ 
ice long after the value of the article has been forgotten. 

Choosing an Occupation for Mrs. Widow. By Goto Hashi- 
mura. 

Resolved, Each husband, during lifetime, chooses occupation 
for Mrs. Widow. 

In present days of efficientness, when person who get job are 
ixpected to have knowledge and experience, required to hold 
dowm same, it are necessily to have family stock-taking to see 
if Mrs. Widow are equipped to fully fill job Hon. Husband have 
picked out for her to support herselfs and child-orphans thereby. 

What does duties of wifes and mothers fit them to be fit for? 

Cooking, sewing, nursing and—oh yes! keeping boreding house. 

Which do you chose for Mrs. Widow to ingage in to fight off 
wolfs, while you are peacefully sleeping in nice comfy corded 
casket? 

Cooking? You know she are good cook, for whenever Culinary 
Queen fail to show up, wich are quite often-frequently, she step 
in breach and step in kitchen and save family from starvation, 
with delightsome delectable dishes. 

But do you wish for her to earn living by restricting range of 
occupation to kitchen range? 

I require no answer. 

Sewing? She sews up clothes for all members of family, ix- 
cept you, who patronize exclusively tailor-establishment, and all 
lady friends compliment appearance of wife and infantry with 
ixtravagant adjective. 


222 


ADDITIONAL SERVICE 


But when you have look tip wages paid per j^ear for sewing up 
.seems in night-shirt, day-shirt, overwear and underwear factory; 
will you feel satisfied for formerly wife to weakly wrestle for 
weekly stipened, by aid of Messrs. Wilcox and Gibbs? 

Again I require no answer. 

Nursing? \ ou remember how sufficiently wife have cared for 
child-infants. You knoAV she know all about every baffling 
science of getting baby to stop crying when he Avon't do so. But 
do you ay ant her to exercise said knoAvledge for 24 hours each 
every day Avith other people's spring-offs, perhapsly receiving 7$ 
per week while doing so? 

Once more 1 require no answer. 

Keeping Boreding House? Go live in one. Look at formerly- 
in-better-circumstances-lady Avho keep same. Do she go not rid¬ 
ing on fine afternoon in Peerless-Arrow touring car? Hardly. 
Her time are more fully occupied with doing Avork as Hon. First 
Assistant Chamber Maid-Cook, Char-lady and furnace tender, in 
order to make rate of 8$ per each week, paid by boreders, suf¬ 
ficient to pay rent man, coal ditto, gas ditto, meat ditto, vegetable 
ditto, grocery ditto, and etc. ditto, and have enough left over to 
buy black alpacka dress every other year or so. . . . After you 
have looked over this occupation will you feel satisfied that you 
can R. I. P. while Mrs. Widow is ingaging in same? 

Once more again I require no ansAver. 

Still, you say you believe in preparefulness. Then Avhy not be¬ 
gin right iioav and send her to Business College to prepare to be 
Stenographess ; or to Latv School to be Lawyeress; or to Medi¬ 
cine College to be Doctoress; or to Hospital to be Trained Nur- 
sess; or to Musical Observatory to be Prima Donness?—From 
the Radiator, Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. 

Benefactor of the Poor. By Darby A. Day. 

You may not have the opportunity; you may not have the 
chance to see enough people to make up a million, but I Avant to 
tell you that I knoAV one man in Chicago, who sold last year, 
$3,700,000 among poor people, in one’s, and two’s, and three’s, 
and five’s. But very rarely does that man’s applications run less 
than a hundred a month. Some 1,100 last year, and he is out 
for 1,500 applications this year among poor people. Do you 

223 


SALES METHODS 


think that he does it because there is money in it? Of course, he 
does; but don’t you think that is incidental with him? He has 
made a quarter of a million or more of money, and he does not 
have to associate with the class of people he does associate with. 
But they are his people. He came over to this country an immi¬ 
grant boy. He is now 42 or 43 years of age. He made his pile, 
and he made it through them, and he is loyal to their friendship 
and acquaintance. He does not want business from any other 
class. When I was talking to him, I said, “Herman, why don’t 
you get down on LaSalle Street, and get acquainted with the 
big men, and sell them?” He replied: “What is the use? I am 
happy!” Now, that man had the principle that I would like to 
leave with you. He takes great pride in the fact that he is in 
the life insurance business, and takes pride in accumulating on 
his record, a hundred new cases of protection, a hundred new 
friends, a hundred old friends renewed, a hundred of his friends 
taken care of, a hundred more people who say of him, “Herman 
is my friend; he is the man who gave me for my wife and chil¬ 
dren, the thing that I most desire.” If you can do that, you have 
accomplished all in the world that you want to do. 


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